Taming the Wild One
by The Divine Eye
Summary: Blossom says she can do anything perfectly and easily. So when she makes a bet with her sisters saying that she can turn one of the Rowdyruff Boys, Brick, into a kind person, she is faced with a challenge like no other. Can she do it? Blossom X Brick.
1. The Bet

**(A/N) Hey, hey, hey! This is my very first fanfic, so please be easy on it. I decided to try out a BrickXBlossom story, and I'm planning on doing a story all three couples. Please give me some feedback on this, just to let me know how I'm doing. I know that this first chapter doesn't have much romance in it, but it will definitley pick up in the next few chapters. Hope you like it!**

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**Taming the Wild One**

"Blossom? Could you come give me a hand in the lab, please?" called the young, dark haired man by the name of Professor Utonium from his laboratory.

Blossom Utonium was in the living room, along with her two sisters, reading a thick book she was currently absorbed by.

"Coming Professor!" responded Blossom in her regular, cheery voice. She gently folded the corner of the page and closed it, laying it on the couch.

As she flew off to her creator, her two sisters were intently focused on a video game. Buttercup's eyes narrowed onto the television screen as her fingers darted rapidly across her remote control. Bubbles, however, was confused by the game and had no idea what was going on.

"C'mon, Buttercup, why did you pick _this_ game?" whined Bubbles as she eyed the box of the game labeled '**Street Fighters**'.

"Because I'm not going to play that dumb game '**Bunny Rescuers**' with you!" snapped Buttercup.

"But it's so cute! How could you resist the wittle bunny wabbits?" cooed Bubbles with a smile on her face.

Suddenly, the screen declared Buttercup's character as the winner of the battle.

"YES!" exclaimed Buttercup as she got up and fist pumped the air.

Bubbles threw her remote, annoyed. "That was no fun" she grumbled, getting up from the carpet and wiping her baby blue and black outfit.

"I thought it was pretty fun" said Buttercup triumphantly. Bubbles blew a raspberry at her sister.

Blossom walked in and looked at the screen. She rolled her eyes and sighed. "Why can't you both play a game that you're _both_ are good at?" she complained as she walked to the couch and opened her book.

Buttercup glared at her sister. "Why can't _you_ play with us once and a while?" countered Buttercup. She suddenly snatched the book away from her sister's hand.

"Hey!" exclaimed Blossom.

"You always got your nose stuck in these things! It's summer break for crying out loud! Learn how to have fun for once!" said her sister as she waved the book in her hand.

"I know how to have fun!" said Blossom angrily. She snatched the book back from her sister.

"Alright then, play **Street Fighters** with me" said Buttercup, folding her arms across her chest and smirking at her sister.

"I'm not going to waste my time on some violent video game that melts your brain cells by the second" retorted Blossom as she opened her book and tried to tune out her sister.

"Whatever! You just don't want to play because you know that I can totally kick your butt in it" said Buttercup, returning to the game.

Blossom frowned and glared at her sister. "I bet I can beat you with my eyes closed!" growled Blossom as she slammed her book closed and went over to snatch the other remote.

Buttercup laughed. She knew that would get her sister's attention.

Bubbles rolled her eyes. Blossom always had a thing where she felt like she needed to prove herself to show others she was capable of other things.

"You can't do everything perfectly, Blossom. And I'm gonna show you that you can't beat me in **Street Fighters**!" taunted Buttercup.

"Oh, yeah? Watch me do everything perfectly then, and prepare to eat your words!" said a determined Blossom as she focused completely on the game.

Both of them had gone into 'competitive mode' and didn't even hear when the Powerpuff hotline rang.

"Um, guys?" Bubbles asked, eyeing between the phone and her two sisters. They didn't even acknowledge her.

Bubbles sighed and floated off to the phone. "Hello?"

"Oh, Bubbles! Those Rowdyruff Boys are causing mayhem the city again! We need your help!" cried the Mayor.

"We're on it Mayor!" Bubbles replied and rushed over to her sisters. "Buttercup! Blossom! The Rowdyruff Boys are destroying the city!" cried Bubbles over the noise of the television.

Bubbles was shocked when she got no response from them. Their eyes were ablaze with determination and completely fixed on the game. Bubbles growled and stormed over to unplug the game from the TV. Blossom and Buttercup suddenly froze and their gaze shifted from the dark screen over to Bubbles, who stood in front of them with a scowl on her face.

"Hey!" cried out Blossom.

"Yeah, what gives?" barked Buttercup, folding her arms across her chest.

"The Rowdyruff Boys are destroying the city!" hollered Bubbles, her patience completely gone.

Buttercup and Blossom exchanged looks and zipped out of the house, leaving a trail of pink and green light. Bubbles shook her head and smiled before trying to catch up with her sisters. Sometimes she wondered why they always called _her_ the immature one.

**XxXxX**

Evil snickers were heard at the end of a dark alley. An innocent, little old lady clutched onto her purse tightly with fear stricken eyes darting back and forth quickly. A loud crash made her jump and her eyes narrowed forward.

"The Rowdyruff Boys!" she gasped in her croaky voice.

Three rambunctious boys stood a few feet away from her, devilish smiles plastered on their faces. The counterparts of the heroes of the city moved forward, the little old lady their target of their evil mischief.

"Give us your purse, you hag!" commanded the red leader. He glared lowly at her, trying to look as menacing as possible.

"There's n-nothing of interest to you in m-my purse" stammered the old lady.

The raven haired boy dressed in green sneered and stepped forward. "That's for us to decide. Now give it up, or else!" he threatened.

The old lady frowned. "You don't tell me what to do!" she remarked, waving her purse in her hand.

The third brother dressed in blue ceased the opportunity and quickly zipped towards her and snatched the purse out of the elders hand. The lady stood there, stunned for a couple of seconds. She looked at her now empty hand.

The leaded took the purse in his hands and the brothers laughed evilly while they emptied the contents of her purse, taking her wallet and pulling out a few bills.

"That's enough, boys!" called a defiant voice that came from behind.

All three boys turned around to see the Powerpuff Girls looking down on them, ready for combat. The owner of the voice was the leader, Blossom.

"That doesn't belong to you, Brick!" accused Blossom, taking steps towards her counterpart.

Brick smirked devilishly. "It does now" he said and took off into the sky, along with his brothers following closely behind him.

Blossom and Buttercup trailed after the boys. Bubbles approached the lady with a warm smile. "Are you okay, Miss?" she asked politely.

The old lady sighed. "Yes, dear, I'm fine. Although it would be nice to have my purse back" she told in a small voice.

"We'll get it back, don't you worry" reassured Bubbles. And with that, she took off into the sky to battle the Rowdyruff Boys.

Meanwhile, Blossom had taken on Brick and Buttercup with her counterpart, Butch, leaving Bubbles with Boomer.

Blossom matched Brick's speed perfectly in the air and shot lasers at his hand, trying to knock the purse out of his grip. He quickly dodged her attack and advanced forward, picking up speed. He managed to do a sharp U-turn and plowed right into Blossom. He took hold of her and sped towards a brick building.

Blossom quickly zapped him away with her lasers and he ended up crashing into a building. He cried out in pain but that did not stop Blossom from racing towards him to grab the purse. However, when she reached him, he saw that he was empty handed. He cracked open his eyes and smirked at her.

"Looking for something?" he mocked.

Blossom eyes darted in every direction and she finally spotted Butch with the purse in his hands.

"Buttercup! Butch has the purse!" she hollered.

Buttercup quickly charged towards Butch and delivered a powerful blow, knocking him into the ground with a loud crash. A crater formed around him and he was unconscious, the purse still in his hand.

Buttercup noticed that Bubbles was closer to the ground and quickly called her on it. "Bubbles! Go get the purse!" instructed Buttercup.

Bubbles was pulling on Boomers hair while he pulled her two ponytails. Her head snapped up, along with Boomer, when she heard her sister. Bubbles and Boomer exchanged a competitive glance and both darted towards Butch.

Buttercup, Blossom, and Brick then all sped towards the purse and they all arrived simultaneously with a loud _**BOOM!**_

All of them lay on the ground, groaning, with a large cloud of dust above their heads. When it all cleared up, they all turned their attention towards Blossom, who cried with joy. She had miraculously retrieved the purse.

"Alright, Blossom!" cheered Bubbles as she went to her sister to celebrate their victory. Buttercup blew out a sigh of relief.

The boys, however, were enraged. "DAMNIT!" hollered Brick. He took off his cap and threw it onto the ground angrily.

Boomer groaned in frustration and looked over at his brother, Butch, who was starting to regain consciousness. He blinked a few times, confused. "Wh-what happened?" he moaned.

"We lost…" grumbled Boomer, picking himself off from the ground.

Brick got up and pointed at the girls. "We WILL get you back for this, you brats!" he declared. He scooped his red cap and zipped away in a flash of red. Boomer and Butch quickly followed after him.

The three girls just laughed at the boy's stupidity and gave the old lady her purse back.

"What would Townsville do without you sweethearts?" said the lady with an appreciative tone in her voice.

"Just part of the job, Miss" stated Blossom and with the work done, the three girls headed home with heads held high.

**XxXxX**

Buttercup was watching television in the living room, though her mind was somewhere else. She still thought about her sister's immature remark earlier and she needed to come up with an idea to put her in her place.

Bubbles suddenly landed onto the couch. "Man, those Rowdyruff Boys sure are a lot to handle" she said, completely pooped from the fight.

It felt as if a light bulb had just appeared above Buttercups head. A genius idea had popped into her head the moment Bubbles mention the Rowdyruff Boys. "Oh, that's _real_ good…" said Buttercup in a low voice with a smile tugging on the corners of her lips.

Bubbles looked at her sister with a puzzled look. "Huh?"

Buttercup ignored her and called Blossom into the room. She walked in and raised an eyebrow at her sisters expression. "What's up?" she asked.

"So, you still think you can do anything perfectly?" asked Buttercup innocently.

Blossom laughed. "Yes, of course!" she said.

"Alright then, why don't we make a bet?" proceeded Buttercup as she jumped off the couch.

Bubbles and Blossom looked at each other. "What kind of bet?" asked Blossom.

"If you say you can do anything so easily, let's make a bet that you can turn one of the Rowdyruff Boys into a good person!" challenged Buttercup.

Bubbles gasped. Blossom's eyes widened. Buttercup chuckled.

"What? Too much of a challenge for you?" teased her sister.

"What happens if I win the bet?" asked Blossom suddenly.

Bubbles smacked her forehead and shook her head. Buttercup smiled. "If you win, I'll admit that you can do anything perfectly. But if you _lose_…"

"Which I won't!" intervened Blossom quickly.

Buttercup rolled her eyes. "If you lose, you have to give up your place as the leader of the Powerpuff Girls and let me be the new leader!" finished Buttercup.

Blossom bit her bottom lip. She didn't think that Buttercup would take it this far, but she certainly did not want to look like a coward in front of her. If she agreed to the bet, she would put all of her strength and effort to prove herself, and most importantly, win the bet. And with the last thought, she smiled and gave a big nod.

"It's a deal then. Who am I taking on?" she asked, a gleam of determination in her large, pink eyes.

Buttercup smirked. "Brick. He's the leader of the Rowdyruff's and you're the _current_ leader of the Powerpuff's, so it seems appropriate" she said. "Oh, and you have a month to do this. And I need to see proof that he actually changed, too" added Buttercup quickly.

"I think I deserve all the time I want. Perfection _does_ take time, y'know…" retorted Blossom as she played with her hair innocently.

Buttercup sighed. "Fine. Take all the time you want. But you have to do it!" she exclaimed and then flew out of the room.

Bubbles stared at Blossom with a disapproving look. "Good luck to you" she said in a small voice and focused on the TV.

Blossom shrugged her shoulders. _How hard can this be? I can do anything_ she thought to herself confidently.

Blossom did not realize that she had just gotten herself into something that would change not only one of the roughest villains, but would also change her outlook on her sworn enemy…


	2. Taste of Fire

**(A/N) Thank you for all of the supporitve reviews, especially for my first fic! I should also mention that I'll probably be updating once every week. I just want to give a chance for more comments to come in. But, again, thank you for reading! Hope you enjoy the second chapter.**

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Blossom was in her bedroom, lying on her bed, deep in thought. As the bet she made with her sister began to sink in a little, she realized that this required some strategy.

Brick was, after all, a Rowdyruff Boy. He was created by the evil Mojo Jojo with his evil intentions. Brick was a complete brute and displaying absolutely no signs of mercy to anyone. Blossom highly doubted that he had one good cell in his body.

Blossom gave a frustrated sigh and held her head in her hands. As the leader of the Powerpuff Girls, she had the ability to create effective tactics, and she could come up with them in less than five seconds. To her dismay, though, this bet had no similar ties with any past experiences. She had no idea where to start.

Bubbles walked in and noticed Blossom's frustration. "You okay, Blossom?" asked Bubbles with worry in her baby blue eyes.

Blossom's head snapped up and locked eyes with her sister. She put on a small smile. "Yeah, I'm fine" she replied quietly.

There was a beat of silence before Bubbles went over to join her sister and spoke again. "You know, you got yourself into a really sticky bet with Buttercup" she said casually.

Blossom sighed. "Don't remind me" she grumbled.

"So how you gonna do it?" asked Bubbles with large, curious eyes.

Blossom shrugged her shoulder. "I really don't know," she replied earnestly.

Bubbles pulled her eyebrows together and folded her arms across her chest. "Hmm," she said. "Well, you have to start somewhere" stated Bubbles. "But put it this way, Blossom. You have to start _somewhere…_even if it means not really going _anywhere…_get it?" she suddenly proposed.

Blossom stared at her sister. Bubbles' theory was going under process in Blossom's mind, analyzing everything it could possibly mean.

"Hey! You're not allowed to help her!" exclaimed a voice that came into the room. Buttercup marched in and glared at her sister. "She has to figure it out on her own"

"I wasn't helping her! I just asked her what she was going to do, that's all!" replied Bubbles.

Buttercup then smirked and put her hands behind her head. "I smell an easy victory" she boasted.

Blossom shook her head. "Don't be so sure, Buttercup. I intend to win this bet and I'll do whatever it takes for that to happen" stated Blossom confidently.

Buttercup rolled her eyes. "Yeah, we'll see how you pull through in the next week" she mumbled.

"Oh, Buttercup! I need to see you for a second!" called Professor Utonium from a different room. Buttercup flew out and went to go see what her creator wanted from her.

Bubbles made sure that Buttercup was out of the hearing range and turned to Blossom. "Think about what I said. Find out what Brick is actually like, and then start from there" she whispered and then left the room.

Blossom repeated her sister's words several times in her head, and when an idea finally dawned on her, it felt as if she had seen the light. She searched frantically for a pen and notebook to have this all down on paper, to ensure that she didn't forget.

Once she got her hands on stationary, her hand flew across the paper, jotting notes down as soon as the plan unfolded in her mind.

"Perfect…" she murmured, holding the paper up to the light.

Meanwhile, the little red headed Powerpuff was oblivious to Bubbles watching her the entire time. A smile spread across her face and felt as if she accomplished something. She was quite proud of herself, knowing that she helped Blossom get things going.

As much as Bubbles thought that it was kind of a silly bet, she was a little curious as to how things would turn out. She did know that once Blossom set her heart on something, it would be finished and done well.

**XxXxX**

Somewhere deep in the forest, was a small shack that once belonged to the villain Fuzzy Lumpkins, but was now the home of the three devils themselves, the Rowdyruff Boys.

The three boys were doing nothing at all. It was a rare moment but it happened from time to time. And even though all villains needed a 'day off', it was absolutely absurd to one of the boys. Brick was tired of sitting around and he needed something to get his adrenaline going.

"BOOMER! BUTCH!" hollered Brick in an impatient voice that shook the entire headquarters.

The two brothers rushed to their leader, who had his arms folded across his chest and tapping his foot, clearly irritated.

"We need to show those stupid, whiny brats a taste of our medicine! Let's go tear up the city real good this time, and make 'em clean up after all of it. Then, we'll make sure to clobber them and show the Powerpuff Girls who runs the town!" he declared, cracking all of his knuckles with an evil smirk on his face.

Boomer and Butch looked at each other.

"Y'know, I'm kind of tired today. I don't really feel one hundred percent..." mumbled Boomer.

"Huh?" cried out Brick in complete disbelief. "Are you telling _me_, that you don't want to go cause trouble and kick some Powerpuff butt just 'cause you're not feeling 'one hundred percent'?" he spat.

Butch cleared his throat, getting Brick's attention. "I hate to actually admit this, but I'm with Boomer. I don't feel like doing anything today, either" he said lazily.

Brick looked back and forth between Butch and Boomer. He had a look of disgust on his face. "Stop acting like such cowards! I mean it, LET'S GO!" commanded Brick, his frown creasing deeper.

Butch and Boomer went up against Brick. "We don't feel like it!" said the two brother's simultaneously.

Brick felt like punching them both in the face for acting like such ninnies. It sent his temper skyrocketing when people didn't listen to him, let alone ignore his _commands_. But seeing that he was outnumbered by his brothers, plus also knowing the fact that both of them had similar anger issues, he backed off. For now.

"Fine! More fun for me, then!" he said in defeat and flew out to venture off on his own.

Butch and Boomer shrugged their shoulders and brushed Brick off quickly. Sometimes, not even Brick's own family tolerated his outbursts.

Meanwhile, Brick muttered curse words about his brothers to himself while he made his way to Townsville.

**XxXxX**

Blossom was currently in the city park, making sure to stay out of the view of the citizens. The reason she did not want to attract attention was because she had the plan in action.

The other reason behind that was because she looked like an absolute wreck. Her heroic attire was torn and dirty, she was missing one of her black shoe's, her usual neat ponytail was now messy, and she had some spots of 'blood' on her face and arms. But in truth, it was all part of the plan. She_ made _herself look like this. Of course, it was done without causing any harm to herself.

The plan that she had come up with was to look as if she was roughly beaten in a battle. Once that was accomplished, she was now in a public place and in hopes of seeing the Rowdyruff Boy's. Even though her main interest was Brick, she knew that they were almost always together, so catching him alone would not only be a bonus but extremely unusual and lucky. Once she spotted the boys, she would somehow have to separate Brick from the rest.

What she intended to get out of this was to see exactly how heartless and cruel Brick was. She would be shocked if he showed any signs of compassion, but she really didn't know what to expect. It was the only plan she had so far and it was definitely worth a shot.

Keeping herself away from the people in the park just so they didn't make a commotion, but staying in a spot where she would be spotted if she called for help, she patiently kept a lookout for the target.

She knew it would probably be a long wait before they decided to destroy the city, but she decided to kill some time by looking at the clouds in the sky. She picked out various shapes and categorized them all as well. But pretty soon, she was getting bored.

She must have been lying there for at least an hour because her muscles felt all stiff. She was about to call it quits for the day, until she saw something soaring through the sky. Her eyes almost popped out of their sockets when she made out the figure. It was Brick, and not only was he the one she was looking for, he was alone. Blossom felt like dancing for joy, even though he _was_ for her rival.

Not wasting any more time, she zapped her lasers not directly at him, but close enough to him to get his attention.

Brick flinched back and paused in the air when he saw the flash of pink light. He only knew one person capable of shooting those kinds of beams. He frantically searched bellow him and his eyes finally narrowed at a girl lying on the ground.

Blossom tried to look as weak as possible when she saw that he was making his way towards her. When she saw him land a few feet away from her, she let out a small cough and a groan.

"B-Brick…" she rasped as she cracked her eyes open weakly.

Brick gave her a confused look. He hesitantly made his way towards her but still kept at a safe distance. "What the heck happened to you?" he asked but it didn't sound the least bit caring.

Blossom frowned. "I just fought a giant monster. Please," she hacked "help me get home"

Brick stared at her for a long time. His large, crimson eyes were intently fixated upon her frame, his eyes scanning her from head to toe. They had captured her in a strange kind of trance once his eyes locked onto hers. His eyes were alive and burning, the light of them drawing Blossom like a moth. She squirmed in her place uncomfortably.

Suddenly, he began to approach her. She blinked a couple of times just to make sure she wasn't imagining it.

_Wow, I guess he _is _capable of doing something right…_ she thought to herself.

That thought, however, was completely destroyed when he kicked dirt in her face and ran away, laughing. Blossom spit and coughed out some dirt that got into her mouth and used her hands to wipe away the dirt from her eyes.

"I ain't helping you! Catch you later, _babe_!" he snickered as he flew off into the air.

Blossom felt her face redden from the anger bubbling up inside of her. Sure, it was expected, but it didn't mean that she was pleased with his actions. She quickly made her way home after that and went straight into the washroom to wash the dirt off.

Her impression of Brick was now proven. He was a complete heartless jerk. It was now that Blossom realized that she had a very big challenge ahead of her. But it made her the more determined to change his demeanor and turn him into a positive person.


	3. Friendly Approach

The next day, Blossom was back to the drawing board. Now that she saw what her project's true colors, she had to create a plan from here. She thought to herself, however, how _do _you start from here?

There was no use in using violence against Brick. Forcing him into something would only fuel his anger and would, without a doubt, make things harder for Blossom to accomplish. She needed to somehow gain Brick's trust, and befriend him in some way in order for him to take in her advice on manners.

Her thought brought her to another revelation and a second plan etched into her mind. Grabbing her pen and paper, she once again began jotting down all of her ideas and organized all of her thoughts.

Buttercup came into the room and eyed Blossom, who was writing furiously in a notebook.

"What are you doing?" asked Buttercup.

Blossom was not even aware of her sister's presence. She was intently focused on writing out her plan.

"Hey! I'm talking to you!" exclaimed Buttercup, now annoyed.

But still, Blossom did not realize that Buttercup was fuming for not receiving her attention. She marched up to her and took the book out of Blossom's hand. Blossom looked up at Buttercup in surprise at first, but her expression quickly changed into an annoyed one.

"You really need to cut that out" grumbled Blossom and leaned over to get the notebook back into her hands.

Buttercup, however, wasn't quite finished with it. "What's all this stuff?" she asked as her eyes scanned the messy writing.

"A blueprint for winning the bet" said Blossom with a smile.

Buttercup read the notes and raised an eyebrow. "You think this is going to work with Brick?" she suddenly asked.

Blossom nodded. "It should" she replied.

Buttercup tossed the book back at her and let out a sigh. "Have fun" was all she said and left her sister in peace.

Blossom rolled her eyes. Buttercup was an impulsive person and never took the time to think things through. For the sake of the Powerpuff Girls, Blossom had to win this bet because with Buttercup as the leader, they'd be doomed.

**XxXxX**

The Rowdyruff Boys were flying throughout Townsville, searching for something to destroy for their entertainment. Something shiny caught the eye of one of the brother's, Butch, and he smiled darkly when he took in the sight below him.

Three, very shiny and very _expensive_ sports cars were parked in a wide and empty parking lot. Butch nudged Brick and his gaze followed Butch's.

"Look at those toys" said a pleased Butch and began flying towards them.

Brick's eyes widened with amusement and he zipped down, already excited. Boomer didn't realize what was happening but followed behind his brother's anyway.

When they all reached the cars, Brick let out a low whistle. "Sweeeeet" he said in a sing-song voice.

The red sports car with thunder bolts down the sides had captured Brick's interest and he wasted no time in breaking into the car. Butch approached a neon green car with a black flame design. He punched through the driver's window, shattered glass piling everywhere, and hopped in. Boomer had taken the electric blue car with a white zigzag going horizontally on the left side of the car.

All three boy's had hacked their car's engine and managed to start it with ease. Brick sped out of the parking lot first, stomping on the gas pedal with a loud screeching noise from the tires. Butch and Boomer followed after, maxing out the speed capacities of their 'borrowed' cars. All three of them chuckled lowly as they made their way to the busy streets of Townsville.

All three of them had separated in a few minutes but they all drove recklessly down the streets. To the boys, this felt like playing a video game. To the citizens, it was a complete nightmare.

Brick was speeding down the street and didn't even bother to look out for the pedestrians. They had to look out for _him_. People scattered and screamed for their lives as the boys took over the roads.

"Call the Powerpuff Girls!" yelled out a woman as she ran down the sidewalk.

Brick had picked this up and gritted his teeth. The last thing he needed was those girls taking his fun. Upon hearing their name, though, Blossom flashed across his mind.

And how he almost had the impulse to actually _help _her.

She looked so weak and fragile when he first spotted her. He had no idea why he would ever want to help anyone, let alone help Blossom, his archenemy. He was glad that he retaliated and jumped to his natural instincts instead. If anyone ever found out that he helped out Blossom, he wouldn't hear the end of it. But he still could not get over that itchy feeling to help her….

Brick's hands tightened on the steering wheel. With Blossom occupying his thoughts, it had caused a distraction to his driving. His car swerved out of control and the car crashed into a fruit stand on the corner of the street. Brick was forced back when the air bag popped out in front of him and he sat there, dazed for a good minute before his brain started functioning again.

A furious shop keeper approached the door and banged on the glass. Brick sneered at him and got out.

"Why you ruin my fruit? This cost money!" scolded the shop keeper in his thick, foreign accent.

Brick quickly grabbed him by the collar and pulled him forward, staring into his eyes menacingly. "Maybe I wanted to. You got a problem with that, _pal_?" he hissed.

The shop keeper froze and became stricken with fear. He shook his head fiercely. Suddenly, the man's eyes darted to the sky and relief washed over his face. Brick looked over his shoulder and cursed under his breath when he saw the group of girls advancing towards him. He let go of the man and flew away in search of his brothers.

Brick had no difficulty in finding Boomer and Butch because they had also crashed their cars. "We got company" announced Brick when he regrouped with his brothers.

The Powerpuff Girls had caught up with the Rowdyruff Boys and were now face to face. Buttercup, Bubbles, Butch, and Boomer were all prepared to fight. Brick and Blossom, however, looked at each other curiously.

Brick snapped out of it and remembered that it was her fault that he crashed. He growled and charged at her with all the anger he had built up inside. The rest of the gang followed along and the fight began.

When Blossom saw Brick coming after her, she dodged Brick with ease.

"I see we're feeling better" said Brick and tried to throw a punch at his counterpart.

Blossom's eyes narrowed. "I recover pretty quickly" she said in a matter-of-factly tone.

Brick continued to attack Blossom, but what was beginning to irritate him was that she was dodging him effortlessly. It looked as if she were just dancing around him. Not only that, but she wasn't attacking back.

"You too chicken to fight today?" he barked, testing her.

Blossom just shook her head. "I don't want to fight" she simply replied.

Brick raised an eyebrow. "What?" he asked dumbfounded.

Blossom suddenly took off in the opposite direction. Brick's eyes widened. "What the heck's up with this chick?" he muttered to himself.

He looked behind his shoulder and saw his brothers and the rest of the girls very much focused into their fight. Deciding that no one would notice his disappearance, he went on pursuit after Blossom.

Her sudden change of character had pissed him off to some extent, but also made him rather curious. He looked around and behind buildings, searching for any sign of the Powerpuff. Out of the corner of his eye, he caught a flash of pink light make a sharp turn around the corner of a building.

"Gotcha!" he exclaimed and hurriedly flew towards the light.

But when he followed the path, there was no one or nothing there. Brick stiffened and his frown deepened. He then, very slowly, floated down the street. His eyes scanned everything below him, not missing a single area.

Finally, he found Blossom standing on top of a roof top, her back towards him. He zipped towards her quickly, so that she wouldn't escape him again.

Blossom heard a thud from behind her and smiled. "Took you long enough" she teased and met his hard gaze.

Brick rolled his eyes and ignored that. "Why the heck did you bring me here?" he demanded.

Blossom turned around fully towards him and had her hands behind her back. She had a warm smile on her face. "Because maybe we should stop fighting" she said.

Brick's eyes narrowed. "Stop fighting? You're joking…right?" he asked.

"Nope" she replied, no trace of humor in her voice.

Brick looked at her quizzically. "And why should we do that?"

"Well," she started "fighting and violence doesn't benefit anything or anyone, including us. We should be at peace with one another. And in order to do that, maybe we should be…" she trailed off and then looked at him straight in the eyes.

Brick blinked, totally lost.

"Friends!" she exclaimed happily.

Brick stood there, frozen. The word _friend_ echoed in his mind and just floated there, unable to sink in. Blossom stood there, waiting for a response. Her smile began to fade when Brick stared blankly at her.

"Well? What do you think?" she asked, urging him to say something.

Brick, not knowing how to respond at all, cracked up with laughter. He doubled over and fell onto his knees while holding his stomach. "Why…HAHAHAHA…would w-we, ever HAHAHAHA, be f-friends?" he cried out, unable to stop his laughter.

Blossom put her hands on her hips and frowned upon him. "This isn't funny, Brick! I'm being serious!" she yelled out.

Brick wiped a tear from his eye and managed to stand up. He cleared his throat and his laugh attack ceased slightly. "Do you even know why I was created? Do ya?" he chuckled but kept a cool demeanor.

Blossom tilted her head to the side a little.

"While you and your sisters were made from 'sugar and spice and everything nice', me and the boys were made from 'snips and snails and puppy dog tails'" he said as he recited his creator's words.

As Brick spoke, he slowly advanced towards Blossom. Every step he took forward, she took a step back.

"We were created to _destroy_ you," he continued. "So tell me, _babe_," he slurred with a smirk on his face "you really think we can be friends?"

Blossom blinked as she looked deep into Brick's eyes. "I don't see why not" she said in a quiet voice.

She took another step back, and nearly fell off the building if it wasn't for Brick who grabbed her by the arm and yanked her forward. His face was uncomfortably close to hers as he loomed over her. Brick's frowned creased.

"We'll never be friends" he said in a low voice. He removed his grip from her and flew away in a flash of red.

Blossom stood there, a little stunned. It wasn't his response that surprised her, but the tingly feeling on her arm where his hand used to be and the unnatural warmth that radiated from her cheeks was what made her stiffen. She rubbed her arms up and down and took off in find of her sisters.

When she rejoined with them again, Bubbles approached her. "Where were you, Blossom? I didn't see you" she said.

"Yeah, and I didn't see Brick either" added Buttercup who came up from behind Bubbles.

Blossom scratched the back of her head and gave a small smile. "Yeah, I was talking with him" she admitted sheepishly.

Both Buttercup and Bubbles exchanged a glance. "Whatever. Let's go home. We already took care of the boys and cleaned up" said Buttercup and flew away.

Bubbles looked back over to Blossom. "You okay, Blossom? You look a little funny" she told with a look of concern.

"I'm fine. Just a little tired" she replied.

Blossom, however, felt slightly discouraged from Brick's response. Not only that, she still felt a little strange from the tingle that she still felt in her arm.


	4. Change of Thought

**(A/N): This chapter is a little longer than I expected it to be, but at least I was able to sneak in some romance in there finally! As usual, thank you for the supportive/constructive comments! Very much appretiated! Hope you enjoy the new chapter!**

* * *

_Friend._

The word kept circling Brick's mind like a merry-go-round. He hadn't the slightest clue as to why the word stuck there, along with that pink Powerpuff, Blossom.

Had some monster conked her on the head too hard for her to be thinking these kinds of things? He was her enemy! He was _created _to _destroy_ her and her sisters! So why on earth would she even suggest that they suddenly put all of their fights-to-the-death behind them and become _friends_?

Brick sighed heavily. He didn't know why it was bugging him so much. He usually would brush stupid things like this off. But there was a teeny-tiny voice behind all of this asking, what if?

_What if_, he was to become friends with Blossom Utonium? Would she become evil like him, or worse yet, would he become good like her? He never had a friend before. He didn't know what it felt like, so his hidden curiosity was provoking those_ 'what ifs'._

He closed his eyes tightly and shook his head. He didn't even want to think that far ahead. He didn't even want to think about becoming friends with Blossom. It gave him this strange feeling in his chest.

"Brick? What are you doing?" asked a voice from bellow him.

Brick was taken out of his thoughts and his gaze came down to his brother, Boomer, who was staring up at him.

"What's it to ya?" shot back Brick, annoyed.

Boomer blinked but gave a small sigh of defeat and began walking in the opposite direction. Clearly he had caught his brother at a bad moment. Brick noticed his brother leaving him and quickly hopped down from the tree. "Boomer, wait!" he called.

His brother stopped and glanced over his shoulder with a strange look in his eyes. "What?"

Brick took in a deep breath. "What's it like to have a friend?" he asked in a slightly timid voice. He almost couldn't believe that those words were coming out of him.

Boomer raised an eyebrow but didn't answer him right away.

"C'mon, Boomer, you're the nicest one out of me and Butch. It makes sense for you to at least have one" said Brick.

"Since when do you want one so badly?" asked Boomer suddenly.

Brick flushed. "I didn't say I wanted one!" he cried out defensively "I'm just askin'!"

Boomer rolled his eyes. "Right, whatever. Well, when you actually want to have a normal conversation and maybe even act like a normal person, ask me then" he said and began walking away.

Brick stood there, rage boiling inside and steam practically coming out of his ears. He let out a cry of frustration and began shooting laser beams out of his eyes, knocking down an entire row of trees. He didn't know _why_ he wanted to know so badly. He had no other business with Blossom, other than being enemies. And no matter how much he kept trying to tell himself otherwise, his curiosity began growing by the minute.

**XxXxX**

Blossom zipped to the phone upon hearing it's call. "Hello?" she answered politely.

"Blossom! There's this…this, **HUGE** robot-monster-thing attacking the town! We need your help! Please!" cried the Mayor from the other side of the line in a panicky tone.

"We're on it, Mayor!" she responded and called after her sisters.

"Let's go, girls! Apparently there's some kind of robot attacking now" she explained to them.

"Robot?" asked Buttercup "We haven't had one of _those_ in a while"

Bubbles and Blossom shrugged their shoulders and left their home to take off into the sky to go see what this monster was doing. And once they arrived, all of their eyes widened.

Before them, stood an enormous silver robot, at least three times the size of the biggest building in Townsville. It's long, metallic arms flailed around, crushing buildings with a mere blow. Strange sounds emitted from this machine and it was a little bit frightening.

"H-How are w-we going to," stammered Bubbles and swallowed hard "destroy _**that**_?"

Blossom looked over at her sister and gave her a reassuring smile. "Nothing that we can't handle, Bubbles" she said in a warm voice.

"Yeah, we can take on this oversized trash can!" hollered Buttercup while looking directly at robot.

It seemed that this robot had a sense of hearing. It turned its head with a sickening screeching noise and looked down directly at the Powerpuff Girls. It's once glowing yellow eyes now turned red and it shot down a powerful laser beam at them.

The three of them bolted before the attack even reached the ground.

"Uh, okay Buttercup, don't make it angry" said Blossom slightly nervous.

"I ain't afraid of no piece of scrap metal! We're gonna be sending you straight to the junk yard when we're done kicking your tin butt!" exclaimed a coy Buttercup with a glint of rebellion in her eyes.

The robot flung its arm viciously at the green Powerpuff and took a direct hit.

"BUTTERCUP!" shrieked Blossom and Bubbles simultaneously. They zipped to their sister, who was in the ground groaning with pain.

"Buttercup, I told you not to make it angry!" scolded Blossom while assisting her to stand on her two feet.

"It was just a lucky shot. If I were to have seen it a nanosecond earlier, I would've been able to dodge it" scoffed Buttercup. She was about to take off into the air, until Bubbles grabbed her by the arm.

"Wait! Look up there" she said and pointed up to the sky.

All three of them narrowed their gaze upwards. Both Blossom and Bubbles eyes went wide while Buttercups eyes became furious.

"You've got to be kidding me" growled Buttercup.

Up above, the Rowdyruff Boys had arrived. They had seen the robot from their home and were automatically drawn to it.

"We've been seeing them a lot more than we should" grumbled Bubbles.

Blossom, however, had her gaze fixed on the leader of the trio. She somehow felt his gaze on her, earning a strange shiver to course through her spine. Blossom snapped out of her small trance and reminded herself that there was a giant monster attacking Townsville.

"Let's ignore them for now. We have something bigger to take care of" Blossom instructed.

All three of them gave a sharp nod before taking off into the sky. They charged at the robot at full speed. Bubbles used a powerful energy ball, targeted at the robot's head. Buttercup threw a full charged punch on the robot's middle section. Blossom used her ice breath to try and freeze the arms in place.

They were all stunned when their attacks failed. Neither of them had been able to put a single scratch on the robot and Blossom's ice breath had reflected off.

Meanwhile, the Rowdyruff Boys were watching the girls' attempts of destroying the machine.

"That's one tough robot…" said Boomer when he saw that the girls were making no progress.

"No it's not. We could easily crush that thing in two minutes" stated Butch.

Brick, however, had his arms folded over his chest with his gaze on the red-headed leader of the group. He watched her attack multiple times but nothing was happening.

He was on Boomer's side, even though he would never admit that. Usually, they'd be able to at least inflict _some_ damage on the monster attacking Townsville, but this time it was a whole different story.

Suddenly, he witnessed the robot raise his giant fist, hammering Blossom straight into the ground. Brick's eyes widened and his breath caught in his throat. Panic and anxiety settled in his stomach, making his posture stiffen. Her name escaped his lips in a hoarse whisper before he could even hold it back.

Butch seemed to be unaware of the outburst, but Boomer had heard it perfectly clear. He tapped Brick on the shoulder but his brother didn't even bother looking at him. He was too focused on what was going on bellow them. Contemplating on whether he should bring it up, he decided that for his own good, he'd keep quiet about what he had heard. For now.

"Man, this robot is destroying all our fun" groaned Butch and folded his arms over his chest.

Brick then had an idea pop inside of his head. "Let's take care of this thing ourselves, boys" he declared.

Butch and Boomer looked up at him, puzzled.

"Obviously the Powerpuff Girls can't handle this thing, so let's finish this. Besides, Butch is right. This thing _is_ destroying all of our fun" he said in a sort of a rushed tone.

Butch nodded in agreement and immediately took off for combat. Boomer didn't leave right away, and instead, eyed Brick suspiciously. Brick noticed and sneered at him. "What the heck's your problem? I said go!" he snapped angrily.

"You sure this isn't because of that pink chick?" asked Boomer with a faint smile on his lips.

Brick felt his cheeks heat up at the mention of the 'pink chick'. He growled and hollered "NO!" right in his brother's face.

Boomer snickered and shrugged his shoulders. "Whatever you say…" he trailed off and zipped away at a blinding speed before Brick could even have the chance to take out his anger on him.

Brick sighed deeply. He knew that the reason he wanted to destroy that thing was, in fact, because of that 'pink chick'. The thought of someone _else_ hurting her, strangely, sent him reeling, let alone actually watching it.

He gave one last glance at Blossom, who was being tended by her sisters. He smirked when he saw her trying desperately to get up and continue fighting. He had to admit, her spunky attitude was somewhat captivating and alluring.

He flew towards his new enemy and joined with his brothers, who were waiting for him to lead them. They all drew their attention to a loud voice calling from the bottom.

"HEY! We're kind of in the middle of something right now!" yelled Bubbles angrily as she waved her arms frantically at the Rowdyruff Boys.

"Yeah, get in line if you're the next ones to get their butts handed to them!" added Buttercup.

Butch rolled his eyes. "Look, we're not here to fight _you_ losers" said Butch.

All three girls frowned and looked at them with confused expressions. "Why are you here then?" asked Blossom.

"Bucket o' bolts over here is taking away everything that we're supposed to destroy, and we don't like it!" told Butch.

"But don't think for a second that we're doing it to help you guys, though" said Brick, stepping into the discussion.

His gaze locked onto Blossom's, and she saw that his eyes told a different story when she saw his raging crimson eyes soften the slightest bit. She went into a slight mode of shock for a few brief moments. She couldn't believe that Brick even _had_ those kinds of emotions inside of him.

"Well, if we can't even put a dent in this thing, then I'd like to see you guys try" challenged Bubbles with a slight smirk on her face.

"Prepare to be amazed, then" said Boomer and flew up to the monster.

He used a special, blue lightning attack and managed to strike his opponent with ease. Unfortunately, it didn't seem to even make the robot stagger a step back from the attack. Boomer's jaw fell a few inches.

"HA! Exactly my point" said Bubbles triumphantly.

"Clearly, this robot is highly resistant to our attacks. It's almost guaranteed that it was Mojo Jojo who designed this one" said Blossom.

Everyone nodded, agreeing with her statement.

The Powerpuff Girls and the Rowdyruff Boys formed one large group and they all flew around the giant machine. Buttercup was becoming extremely restless and impatient, along with her counterpart.

"Why can't this stupid thing just make its way to the scrap yard already?" growled Buttercup.

The robot had taken this to offense, and flung its arm in Buttercup's direction. She managed to dodge it quickly enough and a building had taken the hit instead, rubble and bricks flying in every direction.

"It can't even hit properly, either. Man, talk about a piece of junk" said Butch.

The robot's gaze locked on to Butch, who was hovering around its middle section, and tried to slam its metallic fist into the Rowdyruff. Luckily for Butch, he managed to escape it before it even made contact. Instead, the robot hit itself, leaving a large indent and making it totter a few steps back.

"That's it!" yelled Blossom.

Five pairs of curious eyes all looked in Blossom's direction. "What?" asked Buttercup out loud.

"We need to make the robot hit itself in order for it to be destroyed. This robot has feelings and whenever Buttercup said something rude to it, it seemed to get angry. We need to make it angry so it tries to hit us, but we need to counter that so it hits itself. So, stay close to it and yell some stuff so you provoke it" said Blossom.

"Great idea, Blossom!" cheered Bubbles happily.

Brick let a small smile fall on his lips. _Such a know-it-all _thought Brick to himself.

"Hey!" barked Butch. "I made it happen! If it wasn't for me, then you wouldn't have gotten the idea in the first place"

Buttercup sighed. "Alright, alright, it was your idea. Now can we please hurry this up? Before it starts attacking anything else?"

Everyone then set out and followed Blossom's plan accordingly. Boomer and Bubbles paired up and managed to tangle the robot's arms by flying countless circles around it, confusing the robot tremendously. Butch and Buttercup handled the insults quite well, as suspected, and were able to make the robot puncture several holes into itself. Brick was making more damage on the robot whenever it punched a hole into itself again. That left Blossom watching over the rest of the groups, making sure everything went smoothly.

Brick would sneak a glance at Blossom from the corner of his eye every now and then. Every time he looked over, she winced in pain as she held her side. Brick hesitated, but then made his way towards her.

"You shouldn't be messing with things that are too much for you to handle, Pinky" said Brick through tight lips.

"What do you mean?" she asked. Even though he had called her the most irritating name she could think of, she wasn't concerned about it right now.

"Your side" he said, his gaze unnaturally soft, along with his voice.

Blossom had to hold back a gasp. Surely this wasn't the same Brick she ran into a couple of days ago. Surely this wasn't the same insensitive jerk she talked with yesterday. This Brick was actually showing signs of concern. Something Blossom didn't think he could even do.

But it _was _him. A little feeling of hope swelled in her chest.

Was she…beginning to change him already? It couldn't be happening now. She didn't even have a concrete plan to follow yet!

Blossom cleared her throat, trying hard to focus. But with his gaze on her, so tender and gentle, especially for a Rowdyruff Boy, it was making her head spin slighty.

"You saw that?" she asked in a small voice. Brick simply nodded.

"It's nothing" she finally said after a few beats of silence between them.

Brick shook his head from side to side, letting out a troubled sigh. Suddenly, the rest of the gang began cheering victoriously. Blossom and Brick looked down and saw the once enormous robot, was now in pieces of beaten metal.

Brick zipped down to see his brothers, but before he left, Blossom swore that she heard him whisper "Be more careful". A chill raced down her spine. Brick was completely out of character, and she had to admit, it was a little scary and intriguing at the same time.

Buttercup and Bubbles approached Blossom with concern in their large eyes.

"You okay, Blossom?" asked Buttercup, eyeing Blossom's side.

Blossom shrugged her shoulders. "I've been through worse. I just need to sleep it off and I'll be good as new" she said reassuringly.

The three of them began for home. Blossom looked over her shoulder, meeting the gaze of her counterpart. She couldn't tell from this distance, but she thought she could see a small flicker of concern in his eyes. Blossom pulled out of his magnetic gaze. This was too much of an emotional overload for one day.

**XxXxX**

He had made a final decision. He wasn't sure if it was because of the painful growth of concern towards her inside of him, or a changed perspective of her, or the hurricane of emotions that played inside of him, but he came to a shocking conclusion.

All he knew was that he wanted to become friends with Blossom Utonium.

Of course, he could never speak of this to _anyone_. Not even the closest people to him, his brothers. What would they think of him? They would unquestionably mock him for it, or even worse, abandon him for his budding softness.

It couldn't hurt him to find out what friendship would be like. And if he didn't like it, he could always walk away from her. Brick wouldn't get attached to Blossom. He had nothing to worry about!

…Right?


	5. The Start Of Something New

Blossom's eyes cracked open and adjusted to the morning light coming from her window. She let out a small yawn and sat up so stretch her stiff muscles. Like she predicted, her side no longer hurt from the impact she received yesterday. She stumbled out of bed and quickly got changed to her usual heroic attire.

Memories from yesterday's incident kept playing inside of her head. But it was only one particular memory that replayed over and over, and that was Brick's soft gaze along with the strange things he said.

Blossom let out a shaky sigh as another shiver came down spine. It had been happening ever since yesterday and now, every time she thought about Brick, it would happen. It was sort of a pleasant feeling, but strange and unwanted.

She got her hairbrush and sat in front of her vanity. Taking her long, red hair in her hands, she untangled it carefully with gentle strokes of the brush. Once she was satisfied with it, she bunched it all up into a high ponytail and put on her usual red bow on her head.

While she was fixing her hair, she heard strange scratching sounds coming from somewhere. Her pink eyes scanned the room. When her eyes passed by the window, she had to choke back a scream. Outside of her window was the Rowdyruff occupying her thoughts, Brick, tapping on the glass trying to get her attention.

She flew over to the window and yanked it open. "What are you doing here?" she cried out.

Brick folded his arms over his chest, trying to look as casual as possible, but his slightly pink face was making it hard for Blossom to take him serious.

"I've been thinking about this 'friend' thing," he began "and I think that maybe I'll try it out. For a day"

Blossom thought her eyes were going to pop out of their sockets by the way the widened. Was she still dreaming? She had to pinch herself lightly to make herself feel a bit more reassured. She realized that she was very much awake and Brick was actually outside of her window, _agreeing_ to the suggestion she brought up a day ago.

"R-Really?" she stammered.

Brick quickly got annoyed. It was embarrassing enough to actually tell Blossom that he was agreeing to the whole friendship situation. He did _not_ want to spend his time babbling about how much time was wasted yesterday thinking about this.

"Yes, really! Now is it gonna happen or not?" he snapped, feeling his face redden by the second.

Blossom didn't mean to smile so big. Or did she mean to yank him inside. Especially crush him to death in her arms. But she was just so happy in that moment, that she was completely oblivious to her actions.

"Yes, it's going to happen!" she laughed while snuggling into his shirt.

Brick stood there, stunned. Reacting to his own instincts, he pushed her away immediately. "Alright, alright, don't get too excited now" he muttered as he brushed his shirt down.

Blossom chuckled and went to her closet to grab her black shoes. Brick leaned back against a wall and watched her rummage through her belongings. He suddenly remembered the injury she had yesterday and an overwhelming feeling of concern washed through him.

"Uh," he began and massaged the back of his neck with his hand "how's your side feeling today?"

Blossom felt her shoes slip out of her hand. She turned around to look at Brick to see a sheepish, and worried, look across his face. She thought she felt her heart skip a beat.

"Better" she replied and bent down to retrieve her shoes again. She felt herself blushing and wanted to avoid his gaze at all costs.

_I didn't know he was so worried…_she thought to herself.

Brick opened his mouth to say something, but jumped at the sound of knocking from the other side of the closed door. Blossom gasped.

"Blossom?" called Buttercup "You up yet? I need to tell you something"

Blossom ran to Brick. "Um, hold on, I'm getting changed!" she called frantically. Blossom quickly yanked Brick into the closet.

"What are you doing?" whispered Brick harshly.

"I don't want my sister seeing you here! She'll have a fit if she see's you!" she replied as she tucked him in between her clothes.

"Blossom? Someone else in here?" asked Buttercup who had now entered the room.

Blossom whipped her body around and smiled nervously at her sister. "Huh? Oh, no, no, no! I'm just talking to myself!" she said, the words just tumbling out of her mouth.

Buttercup raised her eyebrow, noticing Blossom's strange behavior. "Well, I came to tell you that we have to go to the community centre in the afternoon. They called and asked us to help them plant their new garden" she told.

Meanwhile, Brick was listening behind Blossom's clothes. He couldn't help but admit that Blossom smelled _really_ good. It was such a light fragrance, yet so pleasant to the sense of smell. He breathed in deeply, but exhaled a little too loudly.

Buttercup's eyes narrowed to the closet at the same time Blossom stiffened.

"What was that?" asked Buttercup, taking a few steps towards where Brick was hiding "It sounded like someone-"

"It was me! See?" exclaimed Blossom as she mimicked the sound Brick had made. She stepped in front of her sister to prevent her from moving any farther.

Buttercup exchanged glances in between Blossom and the closet. "Well, whatever. Just don't forget" she finally said and left the room.

Blossom let out a huge sigh of relief and turned around to see Brick standing directly behind her. She almost screamed, if it wasn't for Brick covering her mouth with his hand.

"Jeez, relax, it's just me" he said in a soft voice.

Blossom removed his hand. "Why were you standing so close?" she thought out loud, regretting the question the second it left her mouth.

Brick shrugged his shoulders. "You smell good" he said casually.

Blossom automatically blushed at the comment. What made it even more embarrassing was that it was Brick who had caused her to blush. Brick seemed to be unaware of it, though.

"So, we gonna do something?" he asked as he advanced towards the window.

"I guess we could…" she trailed off, thinking of all the possible things she could do with her ex-enemy. To her dismay, nothing was coming to mind.

Brick let out an impatient sigh. "It's either yes or no, Blossom" he said with a slight edge to his tone.

Blossom rolled her eyes at him. "Fine, we'll go to the park or something. I guess I could teach you how to act nice for a change" she said in a somewhat accusing tone.

Brick staggered a step back and stared at his counterpart with wide eyes. "_**Nice?**_" he exclaimed in absolute horror.

"Yeah, nice….? It kinda goes with the whole 'friendship' thing" replied Blossom.

"You never told me I had to be…be…" he couldn't even say the word again. It _hurt_ him to say it. He quickly shook his head and snapped back to his senses. "Forget I even said a thing! I ain't being nice! No one can change this Rowdyruff!" he exclaimed and took off in a flash of red.

Blossom was prepared for that reaction and followed closely behind him. She zapped him down with her pink lasers and quickly pinned him down to the ground.

"What the heck is your problem?" cried out Brick as he struggled in her grip.

"I should be asking you the same question! You said you agreed to be friends!" she said angrily.

"Yeah, so what? I said you could forget about this whole thing, cause' I am _not_ turning nice" he retorted and blasted Blossom a few feet away from him with his eye beams.

Blossom coughed from the cloud of smoke above their heads. Blossom gritted her teeth and furrowed her eyebrows together. She wasn't letting Brick off the hook just yet.

"How pathetic. Quitting on something you just agreed to," Blossom said in a strained voice, yet a mischievous smirk rested on her face. "Kind of chicken if you ask me"

Brick automatically fumed at her remark. "I am _not_ chicken" he said as he clenched his fists at his sides.

Blossom's smirk grew as she found amusement in her reverse psychology tactic. She began making chicken noises, fueling Brick's anger.

"_Fine!_ I'll show you that I can do this! I ain't no chicken" he huffed defiantly. His eyes then widened when he suddenly realized that there was no way out of this now.

"Perfect," mused Blossom with a triumphant smile on her face "now let's go to the park. Bet I can beat you there" she challenged with a wink.

Brick's anger seemed to melt away. He raised an eyebrow while a smirk grew on his face. "You're on" he declared with a gleam of determination in his crimson eyes.

**XxXxX**

Blossom and Brick were sitting under the shade of a tree at the park – Brick had won the race, but only because Blossom had secretly let him win – discussing the rules of friendship.

"So you see, you have to be nice to the other person in order to be friends" explained Blossom to a not-to-eager Rowdyruff.

"Why? Can't we just say we're friends and get the whole thing done and over with?" asked Brick with a frustrated sigh.

Blossom shook her head from side to side. "It's got to happen, Brick. You're not friends with the person if you're not nice to each other"

Brick bit his bottom lip. He still wasn't too fond of the whole 'being nice' thing. It just wasn't in his personality to be nice.

"Brick, trust me, it won't kill you to be nice" teased Blossom.

Red eyes locked with pink eyes. Blossom's words were somehow comforting to him. "Okay, okay, I'll be _nice_" he emphasized "but it's going to be hard"

"I never said it'd be easy," said Blossom "but that's why I'm here to help. We'll start off with something simple, like doing a good deed" she continued as she picked herself up.

"Whoa, what? We're doing this _here_?In public?" he sputtered out.

Blossom gave a sharp nod. Her eyes then narrowed as she looked around the busy park, looking for someone who could use a helping hand. She smiled brightly when she spotted a young boy trying to retrieve his kite down from a tree.

"Over there!" she pointed "Go help out that little boy" she encouraged.

Brick thought that it looked easy enough. He flew over and began prying the tangled mess of string loose from the branched. Blossom stood a few feet away and watched the unthinkable happen.

"Hey! Get away from my kite!" yelled the boy from below angrily.

Brick flinched back at his words, but was quick to react. "I'm trying to help you out you little twerp! Now shut up, or else I'll make sure you never get your kite back again!" retorted Brick as he felt his temper rise dramatically.

"Brick!" hissed Blossom.

"What? He started it!" cried out Brick in defense as he looked over at Blossom.

Blossom smacked a hand on her forehead. Brick just shrugged his shoulders and continued working on the kite. It took him a few minutes, but he finally got it out. He flew down and handed it to the boy.

"Here you go" muttered Brick through clenched teeth, trying to push back the urge to strangle the boy in his hands. No one _ever_ got away with talking to him in a way he thought was threatening without a good beating .

Suddenly, the boy swung his little foot right into Bricks shin and quickly scurried away, laughing. Brick snapped inside.

"THAT'S IT!" he yelled out and charged towards the now sprinting boy.

But before Brick could even move an inch from his spot, Blossom slammed into him, wrapping her arms around his torso. He staggered back a few steps and looked down at her with wide eyes and a faint blush on his cheeks.

"Don't. Even. Move" she said each word loud and clear.

She kept her arms around him until she felt him relax underneath of her. She could feel his heartbeat slowing down and a small smile formed on her lips. When she pulled back, she met his half lidded gaze. He looked so…calm.

"Feeling better?" she asked in a shy voice. His gaze on her was making her feel weird.

He nodded and let out a deep breath. "Yeah, better" he repeated.

She removed her hold on him. Upon doing so, their hands accidently brushed against each other. Both of them stiffened when a rush of warmth washed through them. The pair looked up at one another and something seemed to click at that very moment.

"I gotta go now" blurted out Blossom as she began backing away.

Brick could see that she was scared and he knew that she was feeling the same things he was. "Wuh-wait!" he called out, extending a hand out towards her.

The Powerpuff froze in place.

"I'll see you tomorrow?" he asked sheepishly.

"Y-yeah, s-sure" she replied nervously.

Brick smiled. He smiled a genuine smile that captivated Blossom in that moment. She felt her breath get caught in her throat and her heart rate increase more and more.

"Cool" he said and flew into the sky without another word.

Blossom felt as if she'd collapse. This was seriously starting to freak her out.

First, the shivers were beginning to make her feel weak and pleasant at the same time. Second, the physical contact with him seemed to make her insides jump. And now third, the weird connection that seemed to pass through them.

She had read about these types of things in romance novels. All of these strange symptoms were strictly and unquestionably directed towards one thing. The dreaded 'L' word.

Blossom immediately discarded that thought. It was far too soon to be thinking about that, and not to mention absurd. They were starting off as friends. Blossom had to devote all of her focus and attention to winning this bet.

They had gotten somewhere today, at least. Sure, it wasn't a very good start but much better than she expected. All that really mattered right now was keeping Brick interested enough to stay in her whole 'friendship gig'. But Blossom had to admit, transforming Brick into a different being would be, without a doubt, an accomplishment in her book.

An image of Brick's perfect smile interrupted her thoughts. And Blossom felt that tidal wave of emotions play inside of her all over again.

**XxXxX**

Brick was inside of his room, shirtless and in a complete daze. He held his red sweater in his hands and held it close to his nose. Blossom's scent still lingered on him and it was intoxicating him.

A desire melted deep within, a desire for…her.

His heart began singing loudly in his chest with the image of Blossom seemingly etched perfectly inside of his mind. There was no way she was leaving his thoughts tonight, or any other night from this moment forth.

Brick thought this was what friends were supposed to feel, but then again, a natural instinct told him it was something else. Everything was so new to him and extremely confusing.

He did _not_ want his brothers finding out about Blossom. This had a huge impact on his brothers' number one goal, to destroy the Powerpuff Girls. Brick did not want to fight Blossom any longer.

He sat on the edge of his small bed and dropped the sweater onto the floor. He held his head in between his hands. This was changing too quickly. He should have thought this more thoroughly than running to Blossom and telling her he wanted to be her friend.

But he didn't want to let go now. He was starting to feel a weird kind of attachment towards her. The number one thing he was afraid of happening.

He was feeling lost in his own emotions. However, he planned on just going along with it. If things had to change, then they could change. He didn't care anymore.

Because he came to a shocking realization. He did not want to lose Blossom.


	6. Spending The Night With You

**(A/N) A question I've been getting a lot is concerning their age, and I'll admit, I've been avoiding it because I wanted the readers to have their own imagery without the age restriction, and also because I wasn't quite sure of their age either when I started writing (Whoops.). But since a number of people have asked, their teenagers. Only answer I'll give. Anyways, thank you for the large number of reviews that have come in latley! It's really encouraging and not to mention motivating. Here is another 'fluffy' packed chapter for you! Enjoy!**

* * *

Early the next morning, Brick sat upright in his bed rubbing his face tiredly. He let out a deep sigh as he tilted his head back.

"C'mon Blossom, let me sleep" he whispered to himself.

Brick was nearing exhaustion, the clock on the wall reading 3:30 AM. He had been tossing and turning all night with his mind concentrating on one single thing. Unable to get a wink of sleep the entire night was taking a toll on his body.

He struggled out of his bed, deciding that he wasn't going to get any sleep tonight. He looked around the room that he shared with his brothers and saw that they were deep in slumber. He was extremely jealous of them at that moment.

He collected his clothes off of the ground and slipped out of the shack quietly. He thought that perhaps a night-flight around the city would help wear him down enough to at least get _some_ sleep. Anything to get his mind off of Blossom, he thought, would do.

And so, he circled Townsville more times than he could even count. He was surprised to see it so empty. Usually, any city would be busy 24/7. Not tonight, however. It made Brick feel as if he was the only being in Townsville not asleep.

It was actually a golden opportunity for his mischievous side, since no one was around. He could vandalize and steal until his hands fell off. But for some reason, he wasn't in the mood to do any of that, which scared him deep inside. His gut told him that it was because of Blossom.

Brick groaned in frustration. He had been doing a good job of keeping her out of his head for the past twenty minutes he wasted flying around the city, and now she was back. He did a sharp turn in the air and headed towards the suburban area. He made his way to a quiet neighborhood and spotted the home he was paying a secret visit to.

He reached the side of the house and to the window he had been in front of yesterday morning. He peered inside and a strange, overwhelming happiness bubbled inside his chest when he saw Blossom sleeping soundly in her bed.

Her long, light auburn hair splayed around her form, seemed to mesmerize Brick. He never recalled upon seeing her hair down before and he had to admit, it was kind of breathtaking. His hand rested on the glass. Her hair looked so soft and delicate, not to mention vibrant. He wanted to close the distance between them; just to get a little closer to her was all.

His curiosity got the better of him and he tried to pry the window loose as quietly as possible. He didn't want her sisters ganging up on him, because he knew that they could very well kick his butt considering he was out numbered.

After a few more tries, the window was open and he wasted no time in climbing inside her bedroom. He felt his hands get clammy along with his heart beating a tad bit too fast. He was nervous, something that rarely happened to him.

Brick looked over his shoulder and he saw that Blossom was still fast asleep. She looked so peaceful. No lines of stress on her face, no furrowed brow, nothing. It made him feel calm to know that she was calm.

He approached her very carefully and loomed over her from the edge of her bed. Her quiet breathing was now audible and he could see the rise and fall of her chest as she breathed. Brick kneeled down and was merely inches away from her. Watching her, being close to her, was soothing.

Feeling a bit more daring, he slowly lifted his hand up and reached for her hair. He lifted the strands very carefully and was captivated by the silky, loose, feel of her hair as it slipped between his fingers.

Suddenly, Blossom began to stir slightly in her sleep. Brick automatically panicked and froze in his place. He watched as her lips pursed together and her brows creased down. She breathed in deeply and Brick was sure he was going to get caught. He braced himself when Blossom slowly opened her eyes.

They were heavy with sleep, he could tell. She blinked a couple of times as she looked at the figure beside her.

"Brick?" she asked in a hushed voice. "How did you get in here?"

To his surprise, she didn't sound angry at all. Just a bit surprised. She must have been too tired to actually realize what was going on.

"Um, just hanging" was all he could come up with. He wanted to slap himself for the lame-o excuse.

A small smile formed on her face. "I've been thinking about you a lot" she murmured unexpectedly.

Brick sucked in a breath. Her words affected him more than they should have. It made him feel a bit more relieved that he wasn't the only one with their thoughts clouded by someone. Plus, Blossom admitting that she had been thinking about _him _specifically made him feel all tingly inside, but it was still odd to hear it from her.

She patted the spot next to her as she shifted to the other side of the bed. "Come, join me" she invited with a warm smile.

Brick blinked a couple of times. He was thankful that she couldn't see his expression, because he felt his face go all hot again. "What?" he choked out.

She laughed softly. "Lie down" she commanded playfully.

Brick hesitated, but listened to her and made himself comfortable on her bed, beside her. He could smell that amazing smell that had lingered on his sweater for hours, and it made his head spin.

His head snapped to the side when he felt Blossom snuggling up beside him, nuzzling into his arm contently. "Blossom, you okay?" he blurted out. He knew something was _not _okay.

Blossom looked up at him with a silly grin. "Of course I'm okay. I'm just dreaming, that's all" she mumbled.

Brick felt his happiness crash down. She thought she was just dreaming. He knew it was too good to be true. He opened his mouth to correct her, but closed it when he thought 'Hey, it's good while it lasts'.

"Yeah, you're dreaming" he agreed with her and turned over to his side to face her.

She looked up at him with dreamy eyes, the moonlight shining into the window and hitting her eyes perfectly. He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer to his body. She laid her head against his chest and sighed contently in his hold.

This felt so right to Brick. He couldn't believe that such a simple gesture, holding her in his arms, could feel so good.

His hand tenderly rubbed her back, earning a low, relaxed moan from his counterpart. His hold on her tightened and he rested his head against hers and took in her scent. Blossom giggled at his gesture.

"It's weird that I'm getting sleepy when I'm dreaming…" she murmured quietly.

"It happens," he replied smoothly "I'm getting pretty tired myself"

Brick was finally starting to slip away. Although a part of him told him that he'd get in big trouble if he fell asleep here. He would have a lot of explaining to do in the morning if he got caught.

"Stay here tonight" she said in an affectionate filled voice.

All of the thoughts about leaving then seemed to be blown away. If she wanted him to stay, then he would stay.

"I will" he replied in a husky voice. His lips moved against her hair with the lightest of pressures.

And then, the Rowdyruff and the Powerpuff succumbed to sleep, in one another's embrace.

**XxXxX**

Brick's eyes shot open in the morning when a light knock on the door was heard. He still lay in bed with Blossom tangled in his arms.

"Buttercup, let her sleep in. She looked really tired yesterday" he heard a faint voice say. He matched the voice with Blossom's sister, Bubbles.

A sigh was heard after that and the door was left unopened. Brick relaxed again, but he knew it was time to go. He looked down at Blossom, who was still sleeping soundly in his arms.

If it was up to him, he'd stay until she woke up. Even though he knew that wasn't the smartest idea, it was something he wanted to see. But he really wasn't up for getting caught by the rest of the trio.

And so, he carefully removed his arms from Blossom and tried his best not to disturb her slumber. He got off the bed and the movement caused her to stir. Brick unwillingly reached out the back of his hand and gently brushed it against her cheek, trying to ease her back to sleep.

Her features softened at his touch, earning a triumphant grin from him. Brick then approached the window and began climbing out of it.

He looked over his shoulder at Blossom for the last time. A possessive feeling inside of him sparked as his eyes glazed over her form. He wanted to _hold_ her again, but this time, make sure she was awake for it. He wanted to _protect_ her. Whatever harm came her way, he wanted to be her shield. His eyes flickered up to her lips and desire melted inside of him. He then wondered what they would feel like underneath his own…

Brick shook his head and jumped out of the window. He had to leave before another stupid idea occurred in his mind. Coming here was already risky enough, but doing _that_ would be on a whole new level. He wasn't emotionally prepared to experiment that.

He leapt off into the sky and flew away from the Powerpuff residence, but it certainly wasn't going to be his last visit.

**XxXxX**

Blossom woke up groggily a few minutes after Brick's disappearance. She was very curious, and confused, as to last night's dream. Or so, she thought, because she wasn't one hundred percent sure if that 'dream' really happened.

It all felt _so_ real. It actually felt as if Brick had been in her bedroom last night and in her bed. Besides those facts popping out in her thoughts, the strange sense of being in his arms was what was highlighted in her head.

It was a feeling of comfort, security, protection, and warmth. She also thought she could smell that spicy and rich scent he carried, which she secretly adored. Blossom could physically feel and sense all of this in her 'dream'. A shiver shot down her spine as she recalled on the memory again.

_That is too freaky_… _but what if he _was _here?_ she thought to herself.

Blossom looked around her room for evidence. Her window was closed, so nothing out of the ordinary there. She looked at the empty spot beside her bed and did see that the sheets were slightly ruffled. Her heart thumped loudly in her chest. If he really was here last night…she wouldn't really do anything about it. But she still had to know.

Very slowly, she took the other pillow to her face and her sense of smell automatically picked up Brick's scent.

Her cheeks were aglow with a vibrant crimson. She couldn't believe that Brick had snuck into her room in the middle of the night.

But deep inside, Blossom felt very safe in his embrace. He held her with want, and she liked it-as much as she hated to admit it.

"Blossom?" interrupted Bubbles who barged into her bedroom.

Bubbles looked at Blossom with a strange look in her eyes. "Wow, you're blushing like crazy" she giggled.

Blossom groaned and held her face in her hands. This provoked Bubbles to tease. "Who were you thinking about?" she inquired as she approached her sister.

"No one" stated Blossom, taking deep breaths to stop the rush of blood on her face.

Bubbles rolled her eyes. "Okay, whatever you say. Anyway, get up and come eat, Professor said it's time for you to come downstairs" she said and waltzed out of the room happily.

Blossom looked back at her window once again. She considered on maybe getting a lock but a part of her wanted Brick to come back, just to confirm that he was breaking into her bedroom. Although she had the evidence to prove that he was, in fact, here last night in her bed, she wanted to see if he dared coming back again.

And so, she left the window the same and anxiously waited for night time to arrive once again the entire day.


	7. Be Mine?

**(A/N) I am so sorry for the long wait on the update! I needed a little break from writing because I needed to focus on school, but since it's summer break, I'm back and ready to write. Again, updates should be weekly from now but I might be gone in the next couple of weeks again because I'm moving and I'm not sure how long I'll be without internet. But just to let everyone know, I am going to finish this story so don't worry if I don't update for a while again! Here's - the long awaited - chapter 7!**

* * *

Brick kept trying to convince himself that what he was currently doing was something that he was going to regret. He knew that the more he kept at it, the higher the chances were of getting caught. But alas, here he was, prying open that window once again that gained him access to a sleeping beauty.

This was becoming somewhat of an addiction. The feel of her body against his, the sound of her breathing, the smell that radiated off of her skin and hair, everything about her was starting to corrupt his conscious.

Brick slowly crept up on the girl laying in bed and stood over, watching her. She was deep in slumber, he thought. And so, Brick carefully leaned closer to Blossom and tumbled onto the bed…

**XxXxX**

Blossom's mind was racing a mile a minute at the moment. Her theory was proven correct, and now Brick was directly behind her, in _her_ bed. She felt the heat coming off of him from her back and was trying hard to take deep and even breaths so her heart beat would stay normal.

Luck, unfortunately, was not on Blossom's side tonight. Her heart stepped up the rhythm and pounded furiously in her chest. She wasn't sure if she should continue to act asleep. There was no way that Brick couldn't feel it. She could felt it vibrate through the mattress and through her pillow.

Deciding that looking as if she was having a 'nightmare' might help her think of another idea, she began tossing and turning beside Brick. She began mumbling incoherent things as her arms flailed about. Brick watched her, his eyes wide with panic and confusion.

Blossom jolted upwards, panting and looking around the room. She knew she was putting up a good act, but as soon as her gaze locked with Brick's, her mind went absolutely blank. Meanwhile, Brick was as stiff as a board next to Blossom.

"What the _heck_ are you doing here?" hissed Blossom, but she didn't sound the least bit angry.

"Uh, I-I was…um…." he began, stumbling over his words. He had no idea what to say, and he mentally slapped himself for it.

"Were you watching me?" she asked curiously. She leaned over to her lamp and turned it on, illuminating both of their faces.

Brick felt his heart hammering violently in his ribcage. All of the blood rushed to his face and he was probably as red as his baseball cap right now.

"Well? Answer me!" said Blossom, growing more impatient by the minute, which surprised her because she was the most patient person in Townsville.

"Alright, alright! I was watching you! I came here because I can't get you out of my head, Blossom. I cannot get a wink of sleep anymore because of you. I don't know _why_ I like being close to you, okay? You smell so good and you look so pretty when you sleep, it's just all too alluring! There, is that what you wanted to hear?" he ended breathlessly from his nerves, his chest rising and falling quickly.

Blossom stared back at him in complete shock. Did she hear him correctly? Did Brick just say that she was _pretty_? Where these words even in his vocabulary?

"Um, excuse me?" she asked, completely dazed.

Brick groaned in frustration and got up from the bed. "I am not repeating that" he said angrily and began for the window.

"No, wait!" called Blossom, but he wasn't listening. Instead, he opened the window and started climbing out.

Blossom reacted quickly and grabbed him by the arm, trying to pull him back inside. Brick whipped his head around. "What are you doing?" he exclaimed, but didn't try to pull her free.

"We need to talk!" she shot back, frowning.

Brick shook his head. "No time for that" was all he said.

He then flew up into the night sky. But Blossom was still latched on to his arm, having him drag her along.

"Brick, c'mon, you can't avoid me forever!" she hollered over the sound of the wind rushing past her ears. He was picking up speed.

"I know," he growled through clenched teeth, sounding angry with himself. He looked back over Blossom, who was still dressed in her night gown.

Suddenly, he wrapped his arm around her waist in one swift movement and carried her close to him. Blossom's mouth hung wide open when she saw that he was passing by the city.

"Brick! What the heck! I have to go home!" she yelled angrily.

"Well, you wanna talk or not?" he barked back, just as angrily.

Blossom let out a loud groan and rubbed her eyes tiredly. "Yes, but we could have talked somewhere _close_r to my house" she grumbled.

Brick looked down at her with somewhat sympathetic eyes. He suddenly flew down closer to the ground, until they reached a dark alley. He set Blossom down onto her feet, while she eyed the place cautiously. The place looked a little 'sketchy' to her – a place lurking with criminals to be exact.

Blossom opened her mouth to say something, but was quickly caught off guard when five all-too-familiar shadows appeared at the end of the alley.

"Well, well, well," called out a slightly amused voice "what do we have here?"

Brick turned around and his eyes locked on to the Gangreen Gang. His brow furrowed, annoyed that they interrupt at a moment like this. He turned around to face them fully, covering Blossom with his body.

"What do you want, Ace?" asked an irritated Brick.

Ace shrugged his shoulders but his smirk told that he had something up his sleeve. "Just…taking a detour around the block" he answered casually.

Snake stepped up from beside him and pointed behind Brick. "Whatcha got there behind you?" he asked, shifting his head so he could get a better look.

Brick took a couple steps back until he could feel Blossom. He wrapped his arms around her frame, but Blossom had a different idea in mind.

"Nothing" he lied.

"Brick, let me go, I can handle this!" she hissed. She felt Brick stiffen but his grip on her just tightened.

"No," he muttered sternly, low enough for her to hear.

By now, the Gangreen Gang began advancing towards Brick. Their curiosity was sparked and they finally found some entertainment for the night.

"Then what are you holding?" asked Ace with a grin on his face "Or should I say, _who_?"

Blossom was trying to break free, but Brick's grip was like iron. "C'mon Brick, let's team up and beat these guys to a bloody pulp" she whispered.

Brick considered that for a moment but quickly got rid that thought. They were outnumbered and if Blossom were to get hurt, he'd lose it.

Ace and the four other friends ran towards Brick and before he could even react, they grabbed Blossom out of his grip.

"Hey!" she yelled as Big Billy restrained her against him.

"What's this?" snickered Ace "Blossom? The little Powerpuff Girl out on a date with the Rowdyruff Boy?"

Both Blossom and Brick flushed at the comment but kept they're gaze fixated on Ace.

"Let. Her. Go" growled Brick lowly, his fists clenched at his sides.

Ace gave Brick a confused look. "Whoa, that's not the Brick I know. We just want to have a little _fun_ with her is all" he said slyly, turning to a nervous Blossom.

"I said_, __**let-her-go**_**!**" he yelled, a strange flare in his eyes. His chest was puffed out and his fists slightly shook at his sides.

Ace froze in his spot, but he nodded ever so slightly in Big Billy's direction. Suddenly, Big Billy began running the opposite direction with Blossom still in his grip.

And then Brick felt something inside of him snap. He couldn't contain his anger any longer.

He bolted in Big Billy's direction, flying at an enormous speed. He crashed into him and his fists began flying in every single direction, Big Billy completely defenseless. Blossom crashed a few feet away from the two boys fighting and she watched in amazement. Never in her life had she seen him _this_ angry. The Gangreen Gang were also watching, neither of them wanting to get beaten by Brick.

Brick jumped off of Big Billy and gathered Blossom in his arms. He held her protectively and possessively.

"If you _**EVER **_lay a finger on her, I'll make sure that _**ALL **_of you will get a bloody beating from me!" he raged, his eyes alive and burning with anger.

Big Billy groaned as he held his face in his hands, blood trickling down his face.

Brick had had enough of them and immediately flew into the sky with Blossom in his arms.

Blossom looked up at her savior with amorous eyes. He had protected her. Something that the old Brick would not have done. She was, indeed, changing him. The bet was seemingly far in the back of her head, almost completely forgotten by her. Changing Brick had become a personal goal for her and it had also sparked some very interesting emotions inside of her.

The entire flight, both of them had stayed quiet. He saw her house bellow and flew back into her bedroom window. He gently placed her onto her own two feet and looked her over, seeing if Big Billy had done any damage to her.

"Brick?" interrupted Blossom.

His eyes met hers and they automatically softened. Suddenly, she leaned into him and laid her head on his chest while wrapping her arms around him. Brick stood there, stunned for a few seconds, but eagerly returned her embrace, holding her closer to him. He rested his head in the crook of her neck and closed his eyes, taking in her scent which automatically relaxed his tense muscles.

"Thank you…" she murmured against his sweater.

Brick let out a low groan when he felt her hands move around his back. A feeling fluttered inside of him and he instinctively pressed his lips against her skin. He felt Blossom shudder in his grip as his lips tenderly grazed her neck. He lifted his head and gazed into her eyes.

Blossom could see _passion_ inside of them, her heart beating faster and faster at his intense gaze.

Brick's hand slowly moved up and he gently cupped her cheek. And then, something both of them would never dream of, happened.

Neither of them knew where the force of attraction that brought their lips together came from. Nor did they expect the tidal wave of warmth to wash throughout them. All they knew was that it felt _right_.

Brick was mesmerized at how soft her lips felt underneath his own. He felt as if his body was on fire, his blood pounding through every single part of his body. Blossom was experiencing that exact same thing, and she didn't want this moment to ever end.

However, both of them were starting to feel dizzy from the lack of air. The two leaned away and stared into each other's eyes lazily, trying to catch their breaths.

"This isn't friendship, y'know…" rasped Brick as he tucked a loose strand of hair behind Blossom's ear.

"I don't know what this is" replied Blossom with a faint smile on her lips.

Brick slowly took Blossom's small, soft hand in his rough, large hand. He guided it closer to him and laid it on his chest. Directly over his heart.

"Be," he gulped the lump in his throat "mine?"

Blossom's eyes widened.

Here was her ex-enemy, in her bedroom, asking her to be his. She wasn't expecting this to happen. Heck, it _shouldn't_ have been happening! Her mission was to change him, yet, that's what she was still doing, right? But what would other people think? Her sister would not approve. His brothers would not approve. She didn't think a single person in this town would approve.

To hell with it.

She felt something for him and she couldn't deny it any longer.

Blossom's smile stretched and she nodded. She saw the relief wash in Brick's eyes and he gave her a genuine smile. Not those sly, devilish smirks she was used to seeing, but an actual _warm smile_.

Brick clasped his arm around her waist and pulled her against him. Neither of them had ever felt this happy in their entire lives.

"I know we might not seem like the best fit," began Brick, rocking Blossom gently in his arms "but I promise that I won't let anything or anyone hurt you"

Blossom sighed contently as she nuzzled up to him. "I know" was all she said.

Brick then scooped her up and carried her over to her bed. He gently laid her down and pulled the covers over her. Blossom yawned and closed her eyes as Brick gave her a kiss on the forehead.

"I'll see you tomorrow, Blossom" was the last thing she heard before succumbing to a deep slumber.


	8. A Mistake

**(A/N) I have had no time at all to keep writing because packing is seriously such a pain in the butt. However I did manage to sneak in some writing time a couple times a day so the chapter built up little by little. I'm disapointed that my updates aren't weekly anymore (even though I really am trying!) but at least I have this one done. Anyway's, hope you enjoy this chapter!**

* * *

Days soon turned into weeks, and Brick had stuck to the exact same routine every night. He'd enter through Blossom's window and sleep right beside her, looking after her.

He was never asked by his brothers where he was at night because Brick made sure that he left once they were deep in sleep, and he knew that nothing could wake them up once they were. He was still cautious about Blossom's sisters, however. He had almost been caught once, Bubbles walking in the split second he was leaving the home.

Brick was aware that it was very risky to be coming here this frequent, but he found it excruciatingly painful to be away from her. He wasn't sure if Blossom was aware of that fact, but it seemed like she felt the same way.

Over the past weeks, Brick had grown noticeably soft. He almost never took part in his brothers' evil schemes anymore, but rather just tagged along and made it look like he was doing _something_. Blossom had made it clear that she didn't want to be involved with him if he was going to be committing crimes.

But Brick didn't want to lose Blossom over anything, so he promised her he'd change. He worked a little at it day-by-day and was somewhat proud of what he had accomplished. He never thought that being nice would feel, well, nice.

Brick had his face buried in his lover's neck while his arms were securely snaked around her waist. It was morning – meaning it was time to go.

His mouth moved along the line of her neck and up to her ear, in a repeated and gentle manner. The feeling of her soft skin against his lips was so mesmerizing. Blossom stirred slightly in his arms and turned her head to be greeted by warm, red eyes.

"G'morning" he murmured.

Blossom couldn't help but smile. "Morning" she replied, groggily.

Brick removed his grip on her and sat up on the bed, his hair messy as usual. He got up and headed for the window, but realized he forgot something. He turned around and walked over to Blossom, who was stretching.

Blossom looked up at him and was caught off guard when he placed his lips on hers. She felt herself melt into the moment as he caressed her lips passionately. Too soon, however, he pulled away. He tilted his head up and let his lips roam her forehead.

"Be safe" he whispered, just like he did every single morning.

Blossom sighed as she watched him leave. It was kind of frustrating to have to hide their relationship to the entire world, but as long as she was with him, she would carry on.

Her head snapped to the side when she heard the door open. Buttercup poked her head in and looked at Blossom.

"Good, you're awake. Come on, breakfast is ready" she said and left without another word.

Blossom scurried downstairs and took a seat at the table with Buttercup and Bubbles, along with her plate of eggs and bacon. All three of them ate their food quietly for a long period of time, until Buttercup broke the silence.

"So Blossom, how's the bet coming along?" she asked curiously.

Blossom blinked a couple of times. Her eyes widened when the bet resurfaced in her thoughts. She had completely forgotten about it. Thinking about it, however, she did manage to change Brick.

"Pretty successful, actually" she replied sincerely.

"Now that you mention it, I have seen Brick acting kind of weird when he's with his brothers. I mean, just the other day Butch and Boomer were making a mess in the city as usual, but when I saw Brick, he wasn't doing a thing!" told Bubbles.

"I need to see the proof. Nothing is called until I see it with my own two eyes" said Buttercup.

Bubbles shrugged her shoulders. "Well, what I saw was pretty amazing. I don't know what you did Blossom, but boy did it work" said Bubbles with a smile.

"Thank you, Bubbles" said Blossom, grateful for her sister's support.

"I _am _seeing this today, right? Brick's transformation?" asked Buttercup, eyeing her sister.

Blossom nodded and finished her breakfast.

**XxXxX**

It was early afternoon and the three girls had just met up with a young woman in the park who had agreed to a plan they came up with. It was a 'set up' to put the bet to the test. The plan was that she was expected to ask for Brick's help with finding her wallet and return it successfully, without anything stolen. They had hidden the wallet already and were now sitting in a tree, waiting for the whole thing to unravel.

"So you girls just stay up here and watch. Brick and I usually meet around here at this time so he should be here at any minute" explained Blossom.

"Wait, why do we have to be _here?_ Why can't we just stand beside you and watch?" asked Buttercup, suspicion in her green eyes.

"Because, er, I just don't want other people to interfere with this. That's all." she uttered quickly.

Bubbles and Buttercup exchanged a glance. "Okay, whatever you say…" mumbled Bubbles.

Blossom flew down and walked a few feet away from the tree where her sisters watching attentively. She had been nervous that her sisters were going to stand right there beside her, staring at Brick's every move. Something told her that if Brick were to find out about the bet, he'd get angry. After all, the very purpose of her getting close to the Rowdyruff was to change him – not have him fall for her and vice versa.

Her eyes scanned the sky, and sure enough, she saw Brick making his way to the park. She felt a smile stretch on her lips. She couldn't help it. He landed right in front of her, with a cool yet amorous expression on his face.

"Hey" he said with his hands shoved in his pocket, his red eyes calm and warm.

"Hey" she greeted back.

She saw that his arms were outstretching towards her and she felt a rush of panic inside of her. Her sisters were about to witness Brick hugging her. Before both of them had any chance of advancing, the woman appeared from behind Brick and tapped him on the shoulder. Blossom breathed a sigh of relief. Brick's attention shifted over his shoulder.

"Excuse me, sorry to be a bother," she said timidly "but I was wondering if you could help me find my wallet? I lost it somewhere around here and I'm not having any luck. No one else is willing to help but could you?" she asked, tossing her blonde hair over her shoulder and looking up at him with pleading blue eyes.

Brick took a moment to process all of that and he stayed silent for quite a bit. The woman looked at Blossom, looking for some assistance.

"Brick? Will you help her?" she asked, putting her hand lightly on his shoulder.

He looked over at her and back at the woman. He then nodded his head and gave her a smile. "Sure, I'll help" he said casually.

Meanwhile, even though Bubbles and Buttercup couldn't exactly hear what they were saying, they definitely could see what was going on. They watched as the Brick began flying around, Blossom turning around in their direction with a smile on her face, her expression saying 'told you so'.

Bubbles' eyes gleamed in fascination as she witnessed Brick actually _helping_ someone, while Buttercup kept her gaze locked and focused on every single detail.

About five minutes passed of him searching, and he finally retrieved the wallet. Once he had it in his possession, everyone's concentration amplified as they paid close attention to the next part of the test – giving the wallet back to the owner with absolutely nothing stolen.

"I'm guessing this is your wallet, right?" he asked the woman as she approached her.

"Yes! You found it!" she exclaimed happily.

Blossom, Bubbles, and Buttercup all watched carefully as the wallet moved its way towards the woman's open hand. In one simple, yet jaw dropping gesture, he returned the wallet to the rightful owner.

"Thank you so much. You really have changed" said the woman to Brick before walking away and out of sight.

Blossom turned to Brick with a toothy grin. He looked at her, confused.

"Why are you so happy?" he asked with a playful edge.

"Because you really have changed Brick. You're a nice person now" she replied back.

Brick only watched Blossom as she looked into his eyes. Blossom began getting nervous when his gaze grew more tender by the second. His eyelids began dropping half-way down his eyes, a passion and lust clouding the fiery red. Blossom swallowed hard and she found it increasingly difficult to breathe and think at the same time.

"W-what?" she stammered, noticing that he was moving a little closer to her.

He never responded. Instead, he wrapped an arm around her waist and crashed his lips against hers.

**XxXxX**

Buttercup's hand flew directly over her sister's mouth as she was able to muffle the scream that came out of Bubbles.

"I knew it," muttered Buttercup "I knew that there was something up with them"

Bubbles struggled under Buttercup's grip, but managed to pull free. Her face was red with embarrassment at what she had just seen.

"Please tell me that did not just happen!" rasped Bubbles, catching her breath "And what do you mean you knew?" she added.

Buttercup just shook her head with a disapproving look in her eyes. "I saw him leave from Blossom's bedroom window one night when I was outside. Ever since then she's been acting all weird. This explains it all" she said in a low voice, her arms tightly folded across her chest.

"L-leave Blossom's bedroom?" asked Bubbles, her face becoming a deeper shade of red "You don't suppose…" she trailed off, unable to contain her curiosity.

Now it was Buttercup's turn to blush. Her eyes widened in shock. "Ew, Bubbles! Don't put those images in my head!" she exclaimed angrily. "Besides, I think Blossom has a little more respect for herself to be doing…er…_those_ kinds of things" she said.

Bubbles nodded in agreement. "Well, they look happy. I mean, we have to accept that our sister's fallen in love with Brick" said Bubbles.

Buttercup's head snapped to the side. " No. We most definitely will _not_ accept it. This was a bet and a bet only. Don't you see that this is dangerous for our sister? Sure, she might have changed him in some way, but he will always be a criminal on the inside. Being evil is his _habit_, Bubbles, and habit's tend to stick" she spat angrily.

Bubbles opened her mouth to fight back, but Buttercup was getting up and was about to take off.

"Wait, where are you going?" asked Bubbles.

"I've had enough of this. I'm not sitting here and pretending that everything's fine. I'm doing something about this whether she likes it or not" she growled and flew away.

Bubbles sighed and flew after her sister. She had a feeling that his was going to end _badly_.

**XxXxX**

Blossom was making her way to the tree, praying that her sister's did not see what had just happened. Brick had gone off somewhere after the huge PDA moment, leaving a stunned and nervous Blossom all by herself.

She got to the tree and looked up, only to see it empty. "Bubbles? Buttercup?" she called, but no answer.

Her eyes scanned the rest of the park and the two were nowhere to be found. Nerves soon turned to panic and she had no other choice but to head home.

Upon arriving, she walked in and saw Buttercup and Bubbles sitting in the living room, quietly talking amongst themselves. Their attention was drawn to Blossom as soon as she walked in.

"Well? Did you see him return the wallet?" she said with a fake smile.

Buttercup smiled back, but it had no warmth in it. "That's not the only thing we saw".

Blossom felt as if her heart had risen up to her throat. "What do you mean?" she asked, trying to look as confused as possible, but deep down, she knew what was coming.

Instead of answering, Buttercup glared intensely at Blossom. Without saying a word, she brushed past her sister and left.

Blossom looked up at Bubbles, who had a nervous smile on her lips.

"This isn't good" murmured Bubbles, looking up at the Powerpuff leader with a flash of pity in her blue eyes.


	9. The Truth

"Hey Butch, what's up with Brick?" asked Boomer as he nudged his brother in the arm.

It was late afternoon the next day and all three brothers were back in their home, taking a short break from their usual misbehavior.

Butch let out a low hiss of annoyance but stole a quick glance at the leader who lay on a small sofa across the room. Brick lately had become a person of very few words around his siblings, not to mention a person of very few acts, too.

Brick was currently looking up at the ceiling blankly as he lay perfectly still. Blossom clouded his thoughts and he wanted nothing more but to hold her in his arms. It was usually the only thing he wanted these days. He was abruptly brought out of his fantasies by a remote thrown at him.

"What the heck's wrong with you?" asked Butch aggressively while Boomer watched curiously.

Brick frowned in Butch's direction as he sat upright. "I should be asked you that? Throwing stuff at me has a punishment, y'know" growled Brick, his gaze narrowing.

Butch rolled his eyes. "And you're supposed to be the smart one," he muttered "but that's not the point. You've been acting really weird and we wanna know what's going on" he said.

Brick's eyes darted to the ground. "None of your business" he said lowly. He wasn't going to bring Blossom into a single conversation. Not to his brothers, or anyone for that matter.

"Yeah, it actually is, 'cause you're our bro whether you like it or not. You don't destroy anything anymore, you don't like going out with us, you barley even cuss at people, no fights, no vandalizing, no nothing Brick. You're messed up!" barked Butch, his tone rising with every word.

"What he's trying to say is that you're not you anymore, Brick" spoke Boomer.

Brick's eyes darted back and forth between his brothers. He had never felt a moment of confliction like this. He had no one to turn to and he imagined Blossom feeling the same.

"Yeah, so? Maybe I'm tired of doing things wrong. Everything I've done has always felt wrong. Haven't you guys ever done something _right_ with your lives? Don't you know how _good_ it feels to do something right?" said Brick, standing up and heading for the door.

"Where do you think you're going?" yelled Butch, following him.

Brick didn't answer him and instead quickly flew off to seek the only comfort he had – Blossom. As he flew further and further away, he could still hear Butch hollering things about him in rage, taking it out all on Boomer.

He pushed everything to the back of his mind and raced to the Powerpuff residence. Everything was just becoming twisted and ugly back at home, and he wanted to stay far from there. He reached the window and looked inside and there he saw Blossom, sitting on her bed with a book on her lap. Seeing her caused a much needed rush of warmth in his chest.

He tapped on the glass and her head snapped in his direction. She smiled and ran to the window. As soon as she opened it, Brick launched himself at her and took her in his arms. He pinned her down on the bed and lay on top of her while his arms tightened around her waist, with his face buried in her neck.

"I missed you" he murmured, his hot breath warming her insides.

Blossom giggled underneath of him and sighed contently. "You saw me this morning. How can you possibly have missed me?" she responded with a smile.

She felt him shrug his shoulders. "I'd rather be with you every minute of the day if you'd let me" he told, nuzzling the space between her shoulder and her neckline.

A long moment of silence passed but it was a moment of each other just relishing the company of one another.

"You're usually not here this early," wondered aloud Blossom "did something happen?"

Brick let out a heavy sigh and rolled off of her, sitting on the bed. "Can you tell?" he asked sheepishly, removing his cap and ruffling his messy, auburn hair.

Blossom sat up as well and her eyes scanned his face. A few lines of stress creased in his forehead and his eyes looked somewhat troubled. She smiled weakly and gave a small nod.

"It's my brothers. They things something's wrong with me. I haven't been into the crime scene lately and they're getting suspicious" he began. He saw a little glimmer of worry in her eyes and he automatically took her hand. "Don't worry, they know nothing about you" he said.

Blossom chewed her bottom lip nervously. _So he's having problems with his siblings too_ she wondered.

"But don't think that I'm going to go back to the way I used to be" said Brick in a husky voice.

She looked up at him and met his intense and defiant gaze. "I'm doing this for you, Blossom. I don't want to risk losing you" he confessed. "I can't help the way I feel, so I'm giving it all up. Just for you" he finished, looking deeply into her twinkling, pink eyes.

"Brick," she whispered, her hand slowly moving up to his face. Her palm cupped his blushing cheek and his touch relaxed every muscle there. "Thank you. Thank you so much" she breathed, leaning into him and gently placing her lips on his with a soft kiss.

When her lips parted, Brick's lips quivered nervously. Her eyes sending him into a hypnotic trance clouding his mind from all coherent thoughts. "Let's run away. Leave town, just you and me" he said.

Blossom's eyes widened in surprise. Run away? Leave town? "Wh-why?" she stammered, her brain unable to process his words.

"C'mon, you know that we can never be so public about this. I'm getting tired of having to sneak around like some thief" he said in an exasperated manner. "We could start our life together. I'll take care of you. I'll protect you" he said softly.

While Blossom was somewhat flattered with Brick's proposition, she was still not entirely on board with it either.

"Brick, you know I can't just desert my family like that, and neither can you. I'm sure your brothers would miss you. We're both the leaders of our siblings and leaving them would only cause more trouble" explained Blossom. She saw Brick's face fall a little.

"I don't care anymore. The only thing I do now is care about you" he said, and snaked his arms around her and pulled her in for a kiss.

Blossom returned it, but her mind was somewhere else. For some reason, Buttercup had made her way into her thoughts with her subliminal threat. Blossom felt an odd stab of guilt in her stomach about the bet. She needed to tell him. Before Buttercup did, because she would make it seem much worse than it actually was.

When she pulled away, Blossom sucked in a breath. Brick's eyes flickered with slight worry.

"Everything alright?" he murmured.

"I have to tell you something" she began.

Brick put all of his attention on her, adding to the pressure. She opened her mouth to begin, but both of them jumped at the voice that came from downstairs.

"Blossom! Dinner's ready!" called Bubbles in a sing-song voice.

"I'll tell you later, but do me a favor," she said and pierced into his eyes "Please stay away from Buttercup" she said and gave him a quick peck on the lips before leaving her room.

Brick sat there, confused. Why did she want him to do that? It wasn't like he would _approach_ her in the first place…

He sighed and went to the window. He'd better hear an explanation tonight, or else he would start thinking. And thinking, and thinking, and thinking.

Downstairs, Blossom entered the dining room and saw only two plates of food, one for her and the other one for Bubbles.

"Where's Buttercup?" asked Blossom.

Bubbles shrugged her shoulders. "She said she wasn't hungry and had to go do something" was her reply before digging in to her plate of spaghetti.

"Oh" muttered Blossom before taking her seat. Panic settled in her stomach, taking away her appetite completely. She hoped Brick would heed her warning and do as she said.

**XxXxX**

Brick flew around town, not wanting to return back to his home. He just wanted night to come already, mostly because he needed to know what Blossom was going to tell him. By the look on her face, he suspected that it wasn't something good.

Scenarios played in his head. Was she going to tell him to leave her alone? Did she want their relationship to end? Everything he gave up, _for her_, would go to a complete waste?

He shook his head. He was getting himself worked up when he didn't even know the answer to any of his questions.

While he passed by the park, he felt a sharp pain suddenly on his leg. He looked over and saw that a rock had been thrown at him from down below. As his eyes briefly scanned the area, he saw something quickly make its way into the bushes. He barely made out what that something was and he slowly floated down.

He cautiously stood there for a good ten seconds before carefully making his way to the bush. He jumped back in alarm when he saw glaring green eyes in the shadows of the leaves.

"Buttercup?" he said aloud.

She emerged fully from her spot and smiled not-so-kindly at him. "Hello, Brick"

_Stay away from Buttercup._

Brick stiffened when Blossom's words echoed in his head. The fear behind her words was evident but it still provoked his curious nature. Just exactly _why_ was she so keen on keeping him away from Buttercup?

Before he could decide on whether to listen to Blossom's warning or stay and listen, Buttercup quickly grabbed him and yanked him into the bushes. He shot her back with his laser eyes, but she didn't loosen her grip.

"Look, I'm trying to make this as quick as possible, but you need to hear me out" she hissed as she tried to pin him down in between the branches, so he couldn't escape.

"And why the hell should I do that?" he growled and continued to struggle under the iron grip of the Powerpuff.

"Because it's about Blossom" she said lowly, and that captured his attention.

A brief moment of silence lingered before she spoke. "You wanna know why Blossom got involved with you in the first place? The real reason why she got closer to you? Nothing ever made sense to you, I'm guessing" she said to him, his red eye's clouded with confusion.

Now that she mentioned it, it never really _did _make much sense when Blossom came into his life.

"It all started about a month back. Blossom, being herself, was making a big fuss about how she could do anything perfectly and how she could always accomplish things," she said, mimicking her sister's voice "but then I decided to put it to the test, and that's when you came in" she said, her voice returning to normal.

Buttercup's eyes pierced into Brick's, making him focus even harder on whatever she was going to say next.

"We made a bet. She had to change your attitude completely, basically transform you into a nice being. If she couldn't do that, then she had to give up her spot as being the leader of the Powerpuff Girls, and give that title to me. Of course, she agreed to the bet, and I also think she kind of won, too. I mean, I saw you help that person in the park yesterday. That was also a set up" she ended casually.

Meanwhile, the entire time Buttercup spoke, Brick felt his blood pressure rising. His breathing picked up and a nasty feeling bubbled in his chest. Betrayal. But he still kept quiet and continued to absorb her words.

"What I'm also trying to get at is to stay away from her. Don't think I don't know about your little affair with her. Remember, it wasn't supposed to go this far, and I'm still trying to figure out why she let it. And also because I'm looking out for her. I don't want her to be involved with a villain. Even though I've seen that you've changed, I still don't trust you" she finished and got up, yanking him with her.

He found it odd that his body had gone numb. It actually _hurt_ to hear those words. He suspected that this was what Blossom was going to say – or more like confess – to him tonight. Perhaps it would have sounded better to hear it from her. But it didn't matter anymore. He felt as if he had been used. The whole purpose of them talking in the first place was just for her to keep her precious title. Everything was a mistake.

He was distracted when he saw Buttercup's mouth moving. She was talking to him, but he didn't understand everything she said. Something about if she saw him near Blossom, he'd get his butt handed to him. He didn't care. He wasn't going to Blossom's tonight, anyways. Or possibly any other night. Not anymore.

She then left him alone at the park, where it all began. He even walked to the spot where he first saw her, on the ground, hurt. He chuckled to himself. That was probably a set up, too, a way to get him talking to her.

Flashback's played in his head. Blossom suggesting they become friends, Brick sneaking into her bedroom for the very first time, Blossom teaching him how to be nice, Brick saving her from the Gangreen Gang, both of them sharing their very first kiss…

He came back to reality when he realized that his hurt had quickly been replaced with anger. All of those thoughts brought him to a conclusion. He never meant anything to Blossom.

The red laser that came from his eyes blasted through some trees, knocking them down in a single hit. His anger was making him surprisingly stronger, but he preferred the anger over the hurt and hollowness he felt.

He flew back to his home, an idea popping in his head. It was perfect to help him distract himself from the unnecessary misery Blossom caused him.

He slammed the door open, catching the attention of both of his brothers.

"Brick, you broke the damn door!" hollered Butch as he eyed the snapped piece of wood.

Boomer's eyes widened when he saw his brother. A weird, dark red light was emanating from him. Some sort of dark aura, he asumed. Butch looked up at Boomer, who hadn't said a word, and he saw him looking at Brick. When Butch saw him, his eyes widened.

"What the…" he trailed off.

"Y'know, I was thinking about what I said earlier. I wasn't thinking straight, so pardon my idiotic words" said Brick with a dangerous edge to his words.

Boomer and Butch quickly exchanged a glance.

"Let's go back to the way it used to be, hm? I feel like Townsville needs a little _renovation _from the Rowdyruff Boys" he said with a smile.

Butch's face lit up and he smirked mischievously. "Right on, Brick. Well then what are we waiting for? Townsville isn't going destroy itself!" he boomed and zipped out the door.

Boomer, however, eyed his brother with a slight bit of concern. "You don't look so good" he thought aloud.

Brick's eyes narrowed menacingly at Boomer. "I've never been better. Now let's go, I wasn't asking" he grumbled and followed after Butch.

Boomer sighed heavily. Whatever Brick had in mind, it wasn't looking pretty for all the citizens of Townsville.


	10. Up In Flames

**(A/N) OH MY GOODNESS, I am so sorry for the long wait! I had no idea this much time had passed. Reason behind it was because I moved and it wasn't your typical moved-down-the-block kind so it threw off my routine completley. But I am now a bit more settled in and I will try to update regularly! **

* * *

Blossom sat upright on her bed, chewing on her nails nervously. She glanced at the clock on her night stand that read **1:30 AM**. Brick should have been here by now. He always arrived before ten.

A voice deep in her head nagged at her, telling her that something was wrong. Not only that, but she had a bad vibe that she couldn't shake off. She felt anxious and her body trembled from the uneasiness in her stomach.

Buttercup came home shortly after she managed to finish some of her diner. She tried speaking to her, asking her where she went, but she never received an answer.

"Everything's the way it should be now" was all she said before excusing herself to bed early.

Blossom let out a troubled sigh. Her eyes stayed glued to the window, hoping to see any sign of Brick. She knew he wasn't going to show up. All she hoped for was that there was a good excuse for his absence and nothing to do with her sister confronting him.

"Oh God, please let there be a good reason…" she murmured to herself quietly.

She decided to get some rest for the night and tried to get comfortable in her bed. But it was lacking _warmth_. She had gotten so used to Brick being by her side at night, feeling so secure in his arms, that now she couldn't even remember how it used to feel when she was alone.

Blossom closed her eyes shut. She desperately wished for there to be an automatic way to just fall asleep.

She nearly jumped out of her bed when the hotline rang downstairs. She frowned. Things were usually peaceful at this hour – surprisingly. She heard Bubbles answer the phone and she dragged her feet downstairs. Blossom saw Bubbles having a difficult time trying to understand the mayor over the phone.

"Mayor? Mayor, are you alright?" called Bubbles worriedly. She looked up at Blossom and shook her head slightly.

Blossom signaled for the phone and listened for herself. There was lots of static, and she heard an occasional scream in the background.

"Mayor? Can you hear me?" asked Blossom.

"Girls! Please help me! The boys are-"

More static.

"Mayor! The boys are what? Mayor?" called Blossom impatiently. She was now yelling into the phone over the noise. Bubbles and Buttercup were huddled against the phone, listening.

Suddenly, she heard deep snickering from the other side of the phone. Her posture went rigid.

"What are the sweethearts of Townsville going to do now? Not so strong now, are we" hissed a voice into the phone.

A cold chill raced down Blossom's spine. She knew that voice.

"Brick?" she whimpered helplessly, her voice shaking slightly.

Silence. He didn't respond. She was about to say something again, but he was gone. Buttercup yanked the phone out of her hand effortlessly, Blossom's fingers going limp. Her sister yelling into the phone sounded strangely distant to her.

"What did he say to you?" asked Bubbles, watching her sister's face drain of its natural color.

Buttercup slammed the phone down hard. "They've got another thing coming if they're causing trouble this late at night. No one ruins _my_ sleep. Just wait until I get my hands on them, I'll tear them to pieces" she grumbled to herself as she went back upstairs to change in to her normal attire.

"Blossom? You don't look so good. Was it that bad?" continued Bubbles, grabbing her shoulders.

Blossom shook her head slightly, unconvincingly. "No. Nothing. He said nothing" she murmured. She was fighting back tears.

Bubbles saw her getting misty eyed. She whipped her head over her shoulder when Buttercup came running downstairs, trying to put her shoe on.

"Well come on! Don't just stand there. I want to get this done and over with as quickly as possible" she said and opened the front door.

Bubbles tugged on Blossom's hand and got her to react. Blossom then made her way to her room and pulled out her clothes. She got changed as fast as she could but the entire time, all she could think of, was that he lied to her.

He told her that he changed. He told her that he wouldn't go back to the way he used to be. He told her that he gave it all up for her. He told her that he didn't want to lose her. And it was all lies.

She was hurting, and she was hurting _badly_. She felt drained, and she didn't think that she could put in all of her effort tonight.

A tear ran down her cheek and she quickly wiped it away. Crying would not help her.

This, however, did confirm her suspicion that something was wrong. Brick had not shown up because he was causing trouble. This seemed to spark anger inside of her. Confrontation tonight was _not_ going to go very well.

She hurriedly put her bow in her hair and zipped downstairs and out of the house. She joined her sisters in the sky as they flew to the city.

Her heart fell to her stomach when she caught a glimpse of Townsville in the distance. She could hear numerous sirens going off and commotion from the citizens. Not only that, the city was aglow with a vibrant orange and smoke was emanating from buildings. Everything was up in flames.

**XxXxX**

"Yo, Brick are we done here?" asked Butch as he finished tying the Mayor into a chair.

Brick looked around, taking in the damage him and his brothers had caused. The office looked like a disaster, alright. Bookshelves were on the ground, books and important-looking documents covered every inch of the floor, desks were flipped over, the walls were all torn up, and the windows were completely shattered.

His eyes flickered down to his hand, where he still held the phone. The way Blossom said his name kind of took him by surprise. She sounded hurt. It made no sense to him because she was not the one who was betrayed. She had no right to be feeling like that.

Having Blossom invade his thought was beginning to fuel his anger. He growled in frustration as he threw the phone against the wall.

"Yeah, let's go. Those Powerpuff's are probably on their way now" he muttered.

Butch restrained the Mayor's head in place while Boomer tried to tie a handkerchief around his mouth.

"You'll all end up in jail! This I can guarantee you! The Powerpuff's _will_ get you!" hollered the Mayor, still struggling under Butch's grasp.

None of them paid any attention to him. Boomer successfully tied the piece of cloth around the Mayor's mouth and Butch pulled harder on the rope that constricted him. All three brothers gathered around the chair, looking down on the Mayor with evil smirks.

"Don't you worry, Mayor. Townsville will be nice and pretty once we're done with it" chuckled Brick.

Butch and Boomer snickered and all three of them flew out of the office, leaving the Mayor shrieking for help.

**XxXxX**

Blossom was using her ice breath to try to extinguish the one of many fires that savaged the buildings of the city. The ice melted and turned into water, calming down the flames. Buttercup was evacuating the building as quickly as she could, Bubbles helping her.

But they were getting tired fast. And there was still _so much_ to be done.

Buttercup and Bubbles flew into the sky and joined Blossom. "The building is empty!" yelled Buttercup over the noise of the city. "We need to go see the mayor now, we can't waste anymore time"

Blossom's shoulders sunk as she breathed heavily. She nodded weakly as she followed behind her sisters.

They were beginning to approach the mayor's office and already they could see the aftermath of the Rowdyruff Boys. Seeing that the window was smashed, they quickly entered.

"Mayor!" shrieked Bubbles as they all saw him on the floor, constricted to a chair.

"Girls! Thank goodness you've arrived!" he cried out.

Blossom and Buttercup grabbed him and pulled him upright as they began to untie him. Bubbles began asking questions.

"How long have you been like this?" she asked first.

"Not too long. I'd say maybe twenty minutes" he replied.

"Did they say they wanted anything from you?" asked Buttercup.

The Mayor shook his head. "It was very random! Here I was, finishing some paper work that was due tomorrow, and suddenly the trio burst into the office from the window and began destroying everything in sight! It was treacherous!" he told.

Blossom stayed silent as her sisters continued to ask questions. Her head was too foggy to think straight. Her only concern at the moment was to just find Brick.

The Mayor was set free from the chair and the three sisters were now preparing to leave.

"Nothing makes sense at the moment, so our only option right now is to just find them" said Bubbles.

The Mayor nodded in agreement. "Please stop them. Who knows what they could be doing at this very moment" he said in a low voice.

And with that, the three girls set off into the city in search of the Rowdyruff Boys.

**XxXxX**

Brick, Butch, and Boomer were all perched up high on a building, looking down at the destruction they had caused. Pleased expressions rested on Butch and Boomer. However, their leader had yet to be satisfied.

"We still have more work to do boys," quipped Brick as his brothers turned their faces to him "there's still much to do"

Boomer frowned while Butch looked down at the city. "What more can we do?" thought Boomer aloud.

Brick's eyes bore into his Boomer's. "I want this entire city in flames" he hissed.

Boomer dismissed his brother's vicious glare. "What is the _matter_ with you? You haven't been doing anything but sneaking out of the house late at night and barely talking, and should I even mention that less than twenty four hours ago, you were saying you wanted to change? Now you want to destroy everything in your path?!" screamed Boomer in pure anger.

Both Brick and Butch stared at him with wide eyes. Neither of them had heard him talk like this before. There was a large pause between them but they didn't dare interrupt Boomer.

"You're keeping something from us, I just know it. And whatever it is, it's messing you up real good" he said in a lower tone. He walked up to Brick so he was inches away from him. His blue eyes were ablaze and Brick would never admit it, but he looked terrifying at the moment.

"Before you even considering telling me what to do again, you get your situation fixed" he spat right in his face.

And in two seconds, he took off into the sky, back to his home. Brick stood frozen, Boomer's words sinking in. He gave a shaky scoff, trying to brush it off.

"What an idiot," he said "how dare he tell me what I need to do?"

His gaze was averted to Butch's, who was walking towards the edge of the building. Ready to take off.

"Hey! Where do you think you're going?" yelled Brick as he followed after his brother.

Butch looked over his shoulder. "He's right. You have some serious issues going on" was all he said and flew high into the sky.

"HEY! GET BACK HERE!" hollered Brick, frustration and panic swelling up inside of him.

But it was no use. He was now completely alone.

He roared furiously, shooting lasers in every direction. He really _was _messed up. Nothing was making sense. Nothing was going the way he planned. No one was on his side. Millions of questions buzzed in his head accompanied by these awful emotions brewing inside of him. He desperately wished for everything to go back to the way they used to be.

Yet, these past weeks, with Blossom, had been the best moments of his life. Words could not explain how happy he had been and how_ good_ it felt to be with her.

It made him weak and it corrupted him in so many ways.

And when he heard his name in a tiny, crushed voice, he wished he never looked back. He should have bolted in the opposite direction.

Because a pair of pink eyes pierced into his very soul, shattering his heart. The wall of security he had managed to put up to protect him from the emotions that this girl had sparked inside of him began deteriorating by the second.


	11. Confrontation

**(A/N) Alright, I apologize again for the long wait on the update, but FanFiction (unfortunatley) is not something I consider a priority. And I have my slow days and my days where I simply don't feel like writing at all. Now this isn't an excuse to stop writing, but a heads-up I suppose to let people know that my updates won't be frequent. But either way, enjoy THIS update! Only a couple more chapters to go!**

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Brick's instincts kicked in and in a split second, he took off in the opposite direction, putting as much distance as possible between him and Blossom.

He was _not_ ready to face her. Neither physically nor emotionally. He was so disoriented at the moment; it was as if he had gone into an auto-pilot mode.

Blossom stood and watched, frozen by his action. An awful coldness crept inside her and squeezed her heart, warning her that she was about to break at any moment.

"Blossom?" said a voice that came from behind.

Weakly, she turned her head and met Bubbles' concerned gaze. "What's wrong?" she asked, seeing a pool of tears swelling up in her sister's eyes.

"Brick…" she managed to squeak out before tormented sobs rippled through her body.

Without hesitation, Bubbles ran to her and embraced Blossom. She felt her clothes become soggy from the large amount of tears her sister was producing. She began cooing comforting words into her ear and after a few minutes passed, Blossom pulled back to face her.

"Something tells me this isn't about the bet anymore" said Bubbles with some sympathy in her blue eyes.

Blossom shook her head slowly. She had to tell her sisters at one point. However, this wasn't that kind of scenario she had planned when it came to the moment of truth.

"I have feelings for him, Bubbles. But something's wrong, and I have no idea what it is. I have this awful feeling that I caused this huge mess" she said, motioning her hands to the half burning city.

"Now, now, we shouldn't be jumping to conclusions. You sure you don't have _any_ idea what might be going through his head right now? You think this is random? Because in my opinion, no one goes on a rampage unless provoked" said Bubbles, her eyes narrowing at Blossom.

Blossom wiped away a tear from the corner of her eye. "I have nothing. Last time I spoke to him, everything was perfectly fine, and that was yesterday afternoon" she replied.

Bubbles opened her mouth to say something but was cut off by Buttercup's brash voice interrupting their conversation.

"There you guys are! Enough with the chit-chat girls, there's a city that needs our help if ya haven't noticed!" she barked, making her way towards the duo.

Upon seeing Buttercup, Blossom's mind began racing.

_Everything's the way it should be now…_

And then it clicked.

"What did you say to Brick?!" screamed Blossom, grabbing Buttercup by the shoulders.

Both Bubbles and Buttercup were stunned.

"W-What are you talking about?" stammered Buttercup, removing Blossom's tight grip on her.

"You did something…you said something to him didn't you? Yesterday, when you were gone!" she continued in accusation, her eyes going fierce.

Buttercup didn't answer right away. She stood completely rigid and taken aback from Blossom's theory. She contemplated for a few seconds whether or not to give into her. Yet, not a single reason crossed her mind as to why she was asking this in the first place.

Taking in a deep breath, she looked Blossom straight in the eyes and spoke. "Yes. I did talk to Brick yesterday"

Blossom felt herself lunge at her, but a pair of arms restrained her back. "Don't do anything, Blossom" said Bubbles from behind her, and she realized that it was her arms that were holding her in place.

"I saw him leave the house yesterday. Right out of _your_ bedroom window" hissed Buttercup, her glare intensifying.

"Nothing happened" growled Blossom. "What did you say to him?" she asked again.

"Before I answer that question Blossom, answer mine. Did you really think that a relationship with Brick was possible? Were you that naïve to think that you he would change for you?" asked Buttercup with a mocking edge to her tone.

"I was changing him Buttercup! I really was! He told me he was changing because of me!" she yelled, tears threatening to leak out.

"He was created to destroy us Blossom! He's your enemy because it's in his _genetics_! He already lied to you, can't you see? The evidence is around you! Just take a look at what he did!" she yelled back, taking a step towards her.

"He did this because of _you!_ _You_ told him something to hurt him!" retorted Blossom.

"Why the heck do you care about his feelings, Blossom?" asked Buttercup.

"BECAUSE I LOVE HIM!" screamed Blossom, her voice bouncing off of buildings, creating dozens of echoes.

Bubbles' grip went limp enough for Blossom to break free. She backed away from the two and breathed heavily as her gaze shifted to Buttercup's. Her green eyes held nothing but guilt.

"Now answer _me_," spoke Blossom, her voice low and unsteady "what did you tell him?"

Buttercup swallowed hard and folded her arms across her chest. She tried very hard to hide the nervousness that swelled inside of her, but it did not go unnoticed by Blossom. "I told him about the bet" she responded quietly.

"That's all I needed to hear" said Blossom and took off into the sky without another word.

**XxXxX**

Brick had flown to a less affected corner of the city and he began destroying everything in his path. The lasers that shot from his eyes had intensified in power, causing everything it touched to burst into flames. He burst into all of the windows in sight, countless pieces of shattered glass covering every inch of pavement down below.

People screamed and fled like ants wherever he approached.

_How dare she come looking for me?_ thought Brick furiously to himself.

Perhaps she would play victim and continue to manipulate him like she had done from the very beginning. He needed to put Blossom in the negative aspect in his mind. If he thought back into his memories of her, thought one single pleasurable memory, it would be his breaking point. He needed to _strong_ for himself. He needed to keep this mindset steady.

As he continued to fly around and cause mayhem, he eyed an ally way and saw an all too familiar old lady hiding behind a dumpster with that purse in her hands.

A deadly smirk crossed his face, feeling a thirst for revenge. He flew down slowly, landing quietly onto the floor. He cautiously approached the dumpster, put his hands below, and with a mighty pull, the dumpster was sent plenty of feet behind them. The exposed woman shrieked in absolute horror when she realized she was the next target.

"Remember me?" he hissed venomously, despite the evil grin on his face. He bowed down, his face leveled with hers.

The elder trembled violently, her chattering teeth audible.

Brick nodded at the purse she held. "I think you have something that belongs to me" he said.

She hold onto her possession tighter and shook her head. "Just wait until the Powerpuff Girls get a hold of you, you little scum. They'll teach you a lesson you'll never forget!" she told him, trying to intimidate him. Suddenly, she spat right in his face.

Brick jerked his head to the side as if he had been slapped. He stayed frozen for a long time before wiping it from his face. His eyes turned lethal and the smile had vanished completely. "Wrong answer" he growled, and his arm slowly began rising, positioning himself to deliver a strike to the woman.

The senior squeezed her eyes shut and waited for the hit that could possibly take her life away.

"Stop. Right. There" threatened a voice from the entry of the ally.

Brick froze in his spot and his pupils dilated.

_No. It can't be…_ he thought to himself.

Suddenly, the lower portion of his body was hit with ice. He struggled to move again as he felt it paralyze his legs. He watched as the old lady got up and waddled away quickly.

"How can I ever thank you, Blossom?" exclaimed the senior to her savior.

"Like I said before, it's all part of the job" replied Blossom.

Those words sent a haunting reminiscence to flash across his mind. He squeezed his eyes shut and gritted his teeth hard, trying to rid his head of it. He felt his entire body pulsing. Nausea settled into his stomach and he knew he had to get out of here. _Now_.

"Brick, I can tell what you're thinking right now, but-" tried Blossom but her words were cut off and she was sent several feet back by a blast of energy that exploded from Brick.

She skidded onto the pavement and hissed in pain as pieces of glass pierced into her skin. Her eyes darted everywhere, trying to see past the large cloud of dirt and smoke that hung around her. Seeing absolutely no sign of Brick, she flew up as high as she could go.

Blossom instantly saw the vibrant trail of red Brick was leaving behind and without any hesitation, she headed straight for him.

Brick was quickly analyzing different places where she wouldn't follow him. His eyes swept past a burning building and he crashed into a window, tumbling into an office desk. Black smoke was emanating from every direction, yet it didn't affect him like he thought.

He picked himself up and glanced over his shoulder – and gasped.

Nothing was stopping Blossom from getting to him, he concluded. Brick could definitely make out her figure through the smoke. His eyes frantically searched for another way out, but his mind was working against him.

Blossom blew out her frozen breath, having it extinguish some of the fire in the room. She walked straight, feeling weak and lightheaded from the toxins she was inhaling, but she had to keep going. Dragging her feet a few more steps, she eventually came to Brick.

"What do you want from me?" rasped Brick, his chest rising and falling quickly.

Blossom coughed. "Brick, it's not what you think!" she choked.

He saw several trails of blood going down her arms and about a dozen cuts on her face. Anxiety bubbled in his chest, but he forced himself not to give in that easily. He needed to resort to anger.

"You used me," he growled "all this time, because of some stupid bet!"

Blossom shook her head fiercely. "Yes, at _first_ Brick, at first! But-"

"_**NO!**_" he roared viciously, making her flinch back. He saw the look that passed through her eyes. She looked frightened.

A strange, dark red energy began forming around him and his eyes turned a bright, blood red. It was growing by the second and Blossom staggered backwards helplessly as she watched his true power unfold before her.

"It never made sense for you to come into my life," he said, taking a step towards her with a humorless smile to his face.

"Brick, please, just listen to me!" she cried out.

"Everything you said was lies. All lies. You actually made me fall for you," he continued, ignoring her. "Was that part of your sick plan too?"

"No! I fell for you too, Brick, can't you see that?" she tried again, pleading for him to understand.

Brick snickered. "I'll make sure things go back to the way they used to be. The way they _should be_" he said darkly.

He began approaching her, the power around him continuing to develop. Blossom was running out of ideas. Clearly he wasn't willing to listen to her. Whatever Buttercup truly told him affected him in a horrible way. She wasn't exactly sure what he was going to do to her, but she hoped that if the relationship they had constructed together, then things

Inside of Brick's mind, he wasn't sure what he was going to do with Blossom either. A part of him couldn't – wouldn't – let himself harm her in any sort of physical way. However, his untouched power was going out of control and he could feel it. He was slipping away by the second. A strange primal feeling was taking over him.

The thick smoke that still lingered around Blossom was not letting her mind process things normally.

And so, as an act of complete impulse, Blossom lunged herself at Brick and wrapped her arms tightly around his torso. She let out a scream when she felt a death-grip on her arms from his hands. The cuts she had burned in agony, yet she stood her ground.

"Don't you understand that I am in love with you?!" shouted Blossom. "I wouldn't be here if I was using you this entire time! I wouldn't be fighting to keep you!"

Brick felt a tingling sensation inside his chest. Her words sunk in, deeper and deeper each second. Her words sounded nothing but sincere. He tried to gain control again, but his grip on her loosened only a little.

Blossom, feeling that she was finally getting through to him, continued trying to relax Brick. "Please Brick, I need you with me. You mean absolutely everything to me" she pleaded in a whimper.

"Blossom," breathed Brick, his grip loosening even more so.

And then, her hands slid up to the back of his neck and he pulled her against him, crushing their mouths together. Brick stood stiff for several moments, but the hurricane of emotions in his body was as powerful as ever. He instantly released her, only to have his arms wrap around her waist and pressing her body against his. He felt the odd power inside of him ceasing and he finally gained enough control to return her passionate kiss. His mouth slid against hers in a desperate way, as if he would never kiss her again. Brick's lips released hers, but they moved down to her jaw line, leaving a trail down to her neck. His teeth sank into her shoulder and he shivered when Blossom blissfully sighed his name into his ear.

When everything became overwhelming, he pulled back and leaned his forehead against Blossom's. Both panted heavily as their tired yet lustful gazes rested on each other.

"I'm so sorry," whispered Brick, gently cupping her face. Blossom nodded weakly in response.

Yet something wasn't right.

Her breathing was shallow and far too quick. Her body trembled in a way that made Brick's concern spike. She was beginning to wobble from side to side, and his name was the last thing she said before her eyes rolled into the back of her head.

"Blossom!" he cried out, her limp body falling straight into his arms.

It was then that he realized that he was still in the burning building and this was a very dangerous place to have her in. He gently kissed her on the lips before picking her legs up and cradling her in his arms. He flew out of the building and headed to find his only hope in saving her – her sisters.


	12. Recovering

**(A/N) Wow, it's been a while! I'm back and ready to write! Just want to say a big THANK YOU to the support this story has gotten, I love reading all of your motivating comments. Here's another chapter for you guys! Enjoy!**

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"Where the heck is she?!" screamed Buttercup in frustration.

The two remaining sisters had spent an agonizingly long time trying to both tame the wild fires and look for the leader of the trio. Both were nearing exhaustion but the firefighters from not only the city, but the other towns nearby had come to aid with help.

Bubbles shot her a dark look. "This is your _entire _fault if you ask me!" growled Bubbles. "You and your stupid bet…" she snorted.

"Hey, she agreed to it! She was the one who messed up when she fell for the damn criminal" grumbled Buttercup.

Bubbles rolled her eyes. Her sister was too dense and stubborn to understand love, so it was no use in fighting with her.

As the two flew, they saw something approaching them from the distance. Buttercup narrowed her eyes as she tried to indentify it.

"Who's that?" she asked Bubbles.

It took her a few seconds of looking but when she figured it out, her eyes widened and a small gasp escaped her mouth.

"It's Brick!" she exclaimed. "And I think he has Blossom!"

Buttercup fumed. The two darted in his direction and when they were close by, the two stopped in mid air, shocked at the sight before them. Brick carried a seemingly lifeless girl in his arms.

"WHAT THE HELL DID YOU DO-" roared Buttercup, already feeling an overwhelming urge to kill the boy right on the spot if it wasn't for him cutting her off.

"Explanations can be given later, but right now she's more important" said Brick quickly but sternly.

Buttercup sucked in a deep breath while Bubbles blinked numerous times.

"He's right. We need to take her home" spoke Bubbles. Buttercup glared at her blue-eyed sister.

"If its okay with you guys," interrupted Brick "I'd like to be with her. When she wakes up that is"

"No" blurted out Buttercup, folding her arms tightly across her chest.

"I don't see why not" said Bubbles.

"_What?_"

"Buttercup, enough of this! We are all sick and tired of you! Stop being so hot-headed and at least _try_ to reason for once!" hollered Bubbles angrily, clenching her fists. Buttercup's eyes nearly bulged out of their sockets.

"C'mon, Brick, I'll take you to our house" she said politely, turning to Brick. She spun back around to face a fuming Powerpuff.

"And as for you!" she yelled. "Don't come back until you decide to compose yourself!"

Buttercup had many venomous words dancing on her tongue, yet she stayed silent. A part of her was saying that her sister did have a point. She wouldn't admit it though.

Bubbles immediately led Brick to the residence, having him follow closely behind. He looked at Blossom, who's breathing was still uneven. His anxiety was spiking through him and it was driving him absolutely insane. He felt pretty useless at the moment, and the most he could do was be with her when recovering, hoping to help in any way possible.

"Hey, Brick," said Bubbles quietly.

Brick looked up from Blossom and up to her blonde sister.

Her blue eyes were assessing him. "How would you describe your feelings for Blossom?" she asked him, her entire judgment towards him relying on this single question. There was definitely pressure, no matter how innocent she looked.

His voice was stripped of everything but sincerity. "I love her".

**XxXxX**

She felt her body floating but had no mobility. Darkness consumed her entire vision. She had a sense of disconnection from reality. Blossom felt nothing but utter peace. It was strange, yes, being in a complete shadow and feeling like this. Yet somehow, she knew she was safe.

Where was she?

The first thought that registered in her head was that she was dead. Though she couldn't remember how she died. She imagined her two sisters, grieving her death. The leader of the Powerpuff Girls, _gone_. Blossom almost felt herself cringe at the thought. No, that couldn't be it. She didn't feel dead. Then again, she didn't know what that felt like to begin with.

Something was missing.

Yes. A specific event she couldn't pull out from her memory just yet.

_Think, think, think!_

The color red tentatively flashed in her mind.

_Red? Why red?_

Blood? Had she fought? That thought didn't seem to satisfy her.

A red cap came next.

_A cap? I don't remember owning a cap…_

Blossom couldn't put the two together. She had a sense that she was getting clues of some sort. She patiently waited for another image to flash in her mind.

'_Blossom…'_ a husky voice breathed.

Her peace was disrupted by a shot of pleasure coursing through her body like an electric current. The voice almost seemed to have caressed her. Blossom had never experienced a more beautiful feeling in her entire life. On the other hand, it almost seemed to frighten her too. She could _not_ put a single face to the voice that felt so eerily familiar to her.

She continued to wait for another clue, but she got nothing more. All she was left with was the color red, a cap, and a lush male voice.

The puzzle pieces fit together alright, so it didn't explain why she couldn't figure out the identity of this character.

The black that shrouded her appeared to be getting lighter.

When the black had become a soft grey was when she realized that subtle tingling sensations had spread out to her fingers and toes. She tried to move them, but failed.

The color was getting lighter. Grey was turning to white.

Her dulled senses were becoming sharper and the tingling had moved up to her arms and legs. Slowly, Blossom was being dragged out of her dark, peaceful place.

None of this mattered to her, however. Nothing made sense!

When the tingling had taken over her entire body, she was able to move her limbs. Blossom felt tangled in what seemed to be bed sheets. A dull ache was creeping in and she desperately wanted to go back to the place where she couldn't feel a thing.

Something clutched her hand, making her jump. And hurt even more.

Her eyes flew open and she drew in a sharp breath, her lungs burning as if the air was acid.

"Blossom?" asked a frantic voice.

Her gaze traveled to her hand, where another was slipped into it and it traveled up to meet uneasy yet piercing eyes. Red eyes.

Red.

"Brick!" she choked out, the realization feeling like a slap in the face. The rest came flooding in uncontrollably.

She took in his appearance and her mouth gapped wide open. Random areas on his body were covered in a black substance, his clothes were all tattered and dirty, the hair stuck out all over the place, but that wasn't the worst of it. His expression was utterly drained. Exhaustion was not enough of a word to describe his current state. The red eyes that even though held worry, were blood shot and the bags that hung low below them could've passed as bruises.

"How are you feeling?" asked Brick anxiously, gripping her hand with the both of his.

"_Me_?" she sputtered out. "You look like you're going to pass out any minute! Here, lie down for a bit" she began getting up but winced in pain with the slightest movement.

"Easy there, Blossom," he murmured as he gently pulled her back down. He adjusted some of her pillows. "I'm tired, I won't deny that, but you're ten times worse than me" he told her.

Blossom let out a sigh of frustration. She'd probably be stuck in this bed for a couple of days at most. Too long for her.

"What time is it anyways?" she asked.

Brick looked over his shoulder and out the window. The sun was out. "I think it's already noon. You've been out for only a few hours. I think you need to keep resting" he suggested as he placed his hand back into hers.

"Have you been here all night?"

He nodded weakly in response.

A deep appreciation brewed inside her. His caring side never ceased to make her heart soar.

Then a thought suddenly struck her. "Wait! Do my sisters know you're here?" she asked urgently.

His lips formed a grim smile. "They sure do" he replied casually.

"And they're okay with that?"

"Bubbles is. Can't say the same about Buttercup" he didn't bother hiding the irritation in his voice.

Blossom let out a hiss of annoyance. "Whatever. I expected that from her anyways" she grumbled, rolling her eyes.

"Listen, Blossom," began Brick, changing the subject. Blossom could feel the hesitation from him.

"I'm really sorry about everything. It's practically my fault that you're like this. I seriously wish I could take it all back, Blossom, really I do" he told her, looking at her straight in the eyes. Blossom could see sadness behind them, and it made her upset too.

"No, if anyone should apologize, it's me. I should have told you about the bet before things got out of hand. And I get why you got angry. It's just," she paused, making sure Brick grasped every single word she said. "I can't help the way I feel about you. Even if I didn't intend for it to happen, I don't regret a single thing"

The corners of Brick's lips tipped up slightly. "I never imagined myself falling in love. Or did I imagine love being so amazing. But being in love with _you_, Blossom, is the most incredible feeling in the world. You're mine, and I don't think about letting you go anytime soon. Not now, or ever for that matter" he said with a wink.

She laughed softly and watched as he began leaning into her. Their lips were barley a breath apart when the door knob twisted.

Brick jerked back to his spot and both him and Blossom watched Bubbles walk into the room. Behind her, Buttercup somberly made her way in.

"We weren't interrupting anything were we?" asked Bubbles, oblivious to the almost-kiss.

The 'yes' was on the tip of Blossom's tongue. She wished she could've kissed Brick, but there would be time for that later.

"No" sighed Blossom. Her eyes briefly grazed up to Brick's, who pursed his lips at her for a second. She did everything in her power not to laugh.

"How you feeling today, Blossom?" asked Bubbles with a concerned look on her face.

"A bit sore is all" she lied. Her body was felt like it was on fire whenever she moved.

Bubbles didn't buy her fib. "Really? You look awful" was all she said.

Blossom's eyes drifted to the quiet Powerpuff, who merely looked at the ground. There was something strange about her behavior. Buttercup wasn't one to keep quiet if something was on her mind, good or bad.

As if Bubble's was reading her mind, she piped up suddenly, surprising the rest of them. "Brick, would you mind coming with me downstairs? Just to give Blossom and Buttercup a little bit of space. They have to have a talk, if you know what I mean"

The emerald eyes finally skittered up from below and settled on Blossom. Far too many emotions swam inside them from her to know how Buttercup really felt.

Brick wavered a little but he gave Blossom a gentle squeeze of the hand before getting up and leaving the room with Bubbles.

Finally, Buttercup let out a long and troubled sigh.

"I owe you…an apology" she said lowly, the words feeling forced.

The pink Powerpuff kept quiet, waiting for her to continue.

"The reason I told Brick about the bet was because I don't think he's good enough for you. He's a criminal, an evil creation that doesn't have a single good cell in his body-"

"Hold up" interrupted Blossom. "If you're just going to tell me how much you hate Brick, then you can just turn around and head out that door" she said, pointing to it.

A growl of frustration escaped Buttercup's lips. "Let me finish" she said as calmly as she could. "Another reason was because I just wanted to protect you. I don't trust him and I don't want him to hurt you," she continued.

Blossom opened her mouth to protest but Buttercup held out a hand. "Let me _finish_!" she almost yelled.

Buttercup stayed silent for a long time, trying to find the right words to say.

"But I realized that the person I was trying to protect was being hurt by my actions instead. Though I'll never understand _why_ or _how_ you fell for the dork, I can tell you like him. A lot. And I can tell he likes you a lot too" she admitted, the confession looking like it was killing her by her expression.

Blossom lay there, stunned and taken aback by her words.

"So, I'm sorry for all the trouble I caused" she finished, folding her arms over she chest, face flushed a deep crimson, eyes in another direction.

"Wow" breathed Blossom.

Buttercup's eyes sliced into hers. "That's all you have to say?" she snapped crankily.

That didn't faze Blossom. Instead, she started laughing. "I just can't believe you actually admitted to something. Or apologized" she snickered teasingly.

Her teeth grinded together and her face got even darker. "Don't make me take it back!" she barked.

"Calm down! I'm only kidding," hissed Blossom, momentarily forgetting about her sister's anger issues. "I'm really glad you said that. All this time, I just though you didn't care. And I forgive you, of course" said Blossom sincerely.

A small 'hmph' from Buttercup told her that she was ready to move on and forget about all of this.

"So it looks like you've finally accepted me and Brick, huh?" asked Blossom with a grin on her face.

"I'll accept it, but I don't have to like it! If he makes one _tiny_ mistake, I'm not holding back. He better treat you right 'cause he'll have a lot more to deal with than just you" she warned, though a ghost of a smile could be seen on her face.

A few minutes later, Brick and Bubbles returned to the bedroom after Buttercup calling them in.

Bubbles had a pleasant smile on her face. "So Buttercup admitted defeat?" she asked, eyeing the dark haired girl – challenging her.

She scoffed. In her language, it was a definite 'yes'.

"There's still one more thing," spoke Blossom, everyone's attention turning to her. "Brick, what about your brothers? They should be wondering where you are, right?" she questioned, looking tentatively at him.

His face fell noticeably. He had completely forgotten about them.

"I dunno…" he muttered, shrugging his shoulders.

"Do they know anything about you and Blossom?" asked Buttercup, her gaze narrowing.

He shook his head. A part of him preferred to keep his brothers in the dark, but he knew that it wouldn't last forever.

"I say we go tell them. Better now than never" stated Bubbles.

Never seemed much better to Brick.

He didn't speak, but rather looked at Blossom for an answer. His eyes bore into her, pleading for her to say something. She smiled with effort but it was reassuring in a way to him.

"It would be a good idea to tell them, Brick. It'd make you feel so much better" she spoke gently.

An involuntary sigh passed through his lips. It was true. It would feel like a huge weight off his shoulders if they knew the real deal. No more sneaking around. He knew they wouldn't take it well and maybe they wouldn't accept it. The worst they could do was abandon him. But then again, the thought of losing Blossom outweighed them so much more and it was kind of scary. He cared more about _her_ than his own family.

"We'll go with you. Right Buttercup?" said Bubbles, encouraging him as well.

To his and Blossom surprise, Buttercup gave a reluctant nod of the head.

After what seemed like an eternity, Brick finally spoke. "Alright. I don't know how my brothers will react to you two but I know it won't be pretty. I'll do my best to contain those savage animals, but feel free to defend yourselves" he told them.

It was then that they noticed that there had been a tension in the room. They all seemed to let out a breath of relief.

"Perfect! We'll wait for you outside" told Bubbles before leaving the room with Buttercup.

Blossom motioned for Brick to come closer. When he did, he leaned in all the way to claim her lips. It was a soft, gentle, careful kiss. He leaned against her forehead and breathed in deeply.

"The things I do for you…" he whispered, his breath tickling her face.

Blossom suppressed a smile. "I love you" she murmured.

His lips pressed against hers again. "I love you, too" he said against them.

"I'm sure everything will turn out fine" she told him, reaching up to caress his cheek. His features visibly softened at her touch.

"And if they don't?" he asked, arching an eyebrow.

"Then at least you tried" she whispered.


End file.
